Changing History, Unchanging Heart
by TheUchiha'sLegacy
Summary: He had thought that it had all ended with his death. 250 years later and robbed of the memories of his past life, Naruto and the Shinigami-daikou Kurosaki Ichigo stumbles upon an ancient secret hidden deep in Soul Society- the lost saga of the Rikudou Sennin... Old friends reunited and the appearance of new enemies... Will Naruto die a hero, or will he rise up to become a legend?
1. The Ryoka's Arrival

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto or Bleach in any way, but Uchiha Pain is my own character.

A big thanks to Rocker1600 for just giving me the idea on how to change my writing format and many other things.

**Prologue**

_Heroes get remembered, but legends never die… Tell me, Uzumaki Naruto… Will you die a hero, or will you rise up and become a legend…?_

_- Uchiha Pain_

[Battlefield]

"Naruto!"

Sakura fell on her knees as she frantically glanced over her fallen comrades wounds. _No no no no no! This can't be happening…! This can't be…!_ "I-… I…" Sakura bit her bottom lip, struggling not to cry as she felt tears slowly forming in her eyes. "No…" she whispered. "It can't be…"

Sasuke's eyes widened as he saw Sakura's reaction. "Sakura, what's wrong?! Can't you heal him?!"

"I…" Sakura stared at the ground next to her, unable to look Sasuke in the face. The wounded Uchiha struggled to get up, wincing as he gripped his chest. He reached out and grabbed Sakura by the front of her shirt. "What do you mean 'it can't be?'" he asked quietly, staring down at the ground with wide and trembling eyes.

"S-Sasuke-kun…"

Shikamaru, as well as everyone else that was standing around Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, all bowed their heads as they realized what Sakura meant. "No…" Ino sobbed into her hands, unable to even look at the dying Naruto. "Why him…?"

Sasuke suddenly released his grip on Sakura, falling on the ground as his wounds began to take its toll on him. "Sasuke-kun!" cried Sakura as she rushed over to his side. "Are you alright?!"

Sasuke closed his eyes as he regained his breath. "Don't worry about me," he said calmly. "Go and tend to Naruto before he passes away."

The pink-haired kunoichi's eyes widened as he said this. _So he's already accepted the fact that Naruto… that Naruto's going to die…_

A gentle downpour of rain showered the area, adding further to the heavy atmosphere. Sakura bowed her head, the rain gently beating against her skin. _This is wrong... Why does Naruto have to die...? I still have so much things that I want to tell you... I have so much things that I want to apologize to you for... Naruto, I-... I..._ Sakura clenched her hands into tight fists as she glared at the ground through teary eyes.

"Sakura-chan… Sasuke…"

Sasuke and Sakura looked up at the sound of Naruto's voice. "Naruto!" cried Sakura as she turned to him. Sasuke crawled over to Naruto and stared calmly at him, an unreadable expression on his face. "Naruto…" The young Uchiha held out his hand, which Naruto proceeded to grasp. "Heh…" Sasuke squeezed Naruto's hand as he grinned at him. "Cya, brother."

The blonde Jinchuuriki gave Sasuke a small grin and closed his eyes. "Yea… brother." And with that, his hand fell limp and slipped out of Sasuke's grasp, dropping limply by his side.

"N-Naruto...!" whispered Sakura, her bottom lip trembling as tears mixed with rain rolled down her face. She sobbed into Naruto's chest as his breathing grew more and more shallow with each breath that he took. "You don't have to hang on anymore... You can die in peace... Naruto... Thank you."

Naruto smiled as he took one last breath and passed on into the void, finally at peace.

[Beyond the World]

Two figures stared down at the scene below, their arms crossed. The figure on the left was fairly tall and had fairly long black hair that was spiked messily and swayed to the side along with piercing midnight-blue eyes; he looked barely twenty. The figure on the right had dark brown hair and dark brown eyes complete with square glasses. The first figure wore a black shihakushō- a kimono-like robe, and the brown-haired figure next to him wore a white haori with a black uniform underneath it.

"It looks like he died after all," said the figure on the left.

The figure on the right smiled as he stared down at the scene below. "It seems like it. The timing is right too. Just like I predicted…"

"So what now?" asked the other figure.

"Nothing for now," said the figure on the right. "He will arrive in Soul Society in due time, but for now, we have bigger things to worry about. Let us go and inform our soutaichou of this."

"Anyways…" The figure glanced at the scene below one last time before turning around to leave. He snapped his fingers, and a white old-fashioned door appeared in front of them. The doors slowly creaked open, revealing a bright white light that the two figures stepped into.

… "Let's go."

**Chapter 1: The Ryoka's Arrival**

[Deputy Official Chamber Two, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_250 years later…_

All throughout Seireitei, thirteen heads shot up at the alarm that sounded all throughout the region. **"Calling all vice-captains! Calling all vice-captains! All vice-captains are to report to Deputy Official Chamber Two! I repeat- all vice-captains are to report to Deputy Official Chamber Two!"**

… _It had been three days since five ryokas had tried to infiltrate Seireitei through the White Road Gate located in West Rukongai region. With the help of the gatekeeper, Ikkanzaka Jidanbo, they were able to get the gate open, but they were soon stopped by the 3__rd__ Division's captain, Ichimaru Gin._

_Three days after their foiled plan, Seireitei had announced that the five ryokas had broken into Seireitei by breaking through the barrier that surrounded it, and emergency captain and vice-captain meetings were called immediately to discuss this issue…_

Five hours later, a red-haired figure and another figure with short black hair strolled down a catwalk together, conversing as they went.

"This is my first time you know…" The red-haired figure tugged at the white sash around his left arm. "That is, wearing my adjutant insignia…"

"Che!" The figure next to him yawned. "'Course it is. It's my first time too since it was made mandatory. 'All vice-captains, put on your adjutant insignias and report to Deputy Official Chamber Two,' huh?"

They both stopped in front of a door, and the red-haired figure slid the door open to reveal a fairly short female sitting on the floor in deep thought. She had kind brown eyes, and her brown hair was tied into a bun at the end.

She looked up as the two figures as they entered the room. "Abarai-kun! Iba-san!"

"Hinamori?" The red-haired figure looked down at the girl. "No one but you here?" He sighed as he looked around the mostly empty room.

"Looks that way," she answered.

Hinamori and the others turned around as they heard an exasperated sigh behind them. A very busty orange-haired female was standing in the doorway with a bored look on her face. "It's because the vice-captains are always scattered through Soul Society like busy bees," she said as she walked into the room. "It'll probably take at least half a day for them to all gather here."

She sighed again as she passed the three of them. "I think that I'm gonna go and get a drink… Do any of you guys want any? Hinamori? Renji? Iba-san?"

"No thanks," answered Renji and Iba.

"I'm fine; thanks, Rangiku-san," answered Hinamori, giving her a small smile.

Renji blinked as she walked into the other room and turned to Iba, the short black-haired man next to him. "Say, Iba-san… Who's Rangiku-san's captain again?"

Iba took of the sunglasses that he always wore and polished them with the hem of his uniform before putting them back again. "Hmmm…" He scratched his chin as he thought about it. "Hitsugaya-taichou?" he suggested.

Renji snapped his fingers. "That's right. The so-called 'genius boy,' huh?"

Iba laughed out loud. "Yea- just like that U-."

"What about geniuses?" asked a voice behind them.

Renji and Iba jumped up and quickly turned around, startled by the voice. Their eyes widened as they saw a figure standing in the doorway, staring at them. He fairly long spiky blonde hair with jaw-length bangs that framed either side of his face; his front bangs hung about an inch over his deep blue eyes.

"U-Uzumaki-fukutaichou…" stuttered Iba, sweat drops falling off of him as his teeth chattered in comical fright.

The figure's eyes closed shut as he gave them a heartwarming smile with both his eyes and mouth.

"Watsup you guys?"

Renji and Iba quickly straightened up and bowed. "HOW DO YOU DO, UZUAMKI-FUKUTAICHOU?" the both of them yelled out.

Naruto yawned and walked past the three of them and plopped himself down on one of the couches located at the corner on the far end of the room. "Just tired," he mumbled as he made himself comfortable. "Wake me up when the other vice-captains arrive, will you?"

"Sure thing, Naruto-san!" said Iba. He turned to Renji and gave him a thumbs up.

"Say…" Hinamori looked up at Renji and Iba. "When did Naruto-fukutaichou become a vice-captain again?"

Renji looked up at the ceiling as he scratched his chin. "I think that it was about… fifteen years ago?"

Hinamori looked surprised. "Really? That's not that long at all."

"Yea…" Renji glanced over at blonde Shinigami, who was sleeping on the couch with drool coming out of the side of his mouth. "But then again, he's barely over seventy years old… Those freaken geniuses."

"Abarai…" warned Iba as he glanced at the sleeping vice-captain.

Those wanna-be geniuses are all a bunch of weaklings," scoffed Renji. "_Oh, Hitsugaya Toshiro-sama! Oh, Uzumaki Naruto-sama!_ Those freaking little kids wouldn't last a minute with…"

The red-haired Shinigami's voice trailed off as he saw Iba and Hinamori pointing frantically behind his back. Renji blinked around to see a pissed-off Naruto glaring at him comically. "Oy… Abarai," said Naruto venomously with an evil grin on his face. He cracked his knuckles as he slowly advanced towards Renji. "You wanna say that to my face?"

"I-, I… Well, you see, I-…"

A second later, a shrill scream pierced the air, followed by the sound of furniture crashing and butts being kicked.

[Seireitei, Soul Society]

_Three hours later…_

An orange-haired figure streaked past an abandoned building, flipping over and using his hands to propel himself off of a pipe. He landed on the ground on the other side of the pipe safely and continued onwards.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed as he ducked, narrowly avoiding a large pipe that seemed to come speeding at him.

"Come on Ganju, Hanataro! Let's get going!"

The slightly muscular man with chin-length black hair struggled to catch his breath as he clumsily tripped over the pipe, landing splat on his face. "Ahhh…!" he moaned as he rubbed his grazed nose. "Hey, Ichigo- can't we take a quick break already?"

Hanataro, a short shoulder-length black-haired Shinigami, stopped next to Ganju, his hands on his knees. "I-Ichigo-san, c-can we _please_ take a b-break?" he asked as he gasped for air.

Ichigo, the orange-haired figure, skidded to a stop as he glanced back at his two tired out companions. "Geez…" Ichigo scowled at them. "What a bunch of wimps... I _just_ became a freaken Shinigami and I'm stronger than you guys. Che! What a bunch of wimps!"

Ganju lifted his head and scowled at him. "In case you forgot, Ichigo… I'M NOT A FREAKEN SHINIGAMI YOU BASTARD!"

Ichigo simply sniffed and turned back around. "Eh, stop complaining you wimp. Hurry up and get back on your feet already."

"Ok." Ganju got up and took one last deep breath. "I'm good to go!" He looked down at Hanataro. "How about you, Hanataro?"

Hanataro struggled to his feet and gave Ichigo and Ganju a weak smile. "I-, I'm good to go! Let's go!"

Ichigo nodded. "Let's move!"

* * *

After about ten minutes of running nonstop, Ichigo, Ganju, and Hanataro ran past a column of buildings, and Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he noticed a strange blanket of mist enveloping the area. _What is this…?_ thought Ichigo as he looked around.

"Stop, Ganju, Hanataro!" he ordered as they came into an open area. He squinted as he saw a figure walking towards them. As the mist began to clear up, Ichigo could make out a familiar black visor and red hair tied into a long ponytail.

"Heh… Long time no see," said the figure as he lifted up his visor. "Remember me?"

Ichigo clasped Zangetsu with both hands and held it out in front of him, the blade pointed up. "I'd like to forget that face, but there's a mountain of things that I needa return to you… Abarai Renji."

"Oh?" Renji looked surprised. "So you even remember my name? Anyways, I'm more interested in how you managed to survive Kuchiki-taichou's attack… You have my compliments."

"Thanks _so_ much," drawled Ichigo.

Hanataro started to tremble slightly as he saw Renji; Ganju looked down at him, confused. "What's wrong, Hanataro? You know this guy?"

"C-Can't you sense it?" asked Hanataro as he kept his gaze on Renji.

Ganju blinked as he realized what Hanataro was talking about. "Now that you mention it… Watsup with him? Holy freaken reiatsu… This guy's reiryoku is in a whole new different class from the other Shinigami that we've ran into so far. "

Hanataro nodded, gulping as the red-haired vice-captain slowly drew his Zanpakuto from its sheath. "H-He's the rokubantai-fukutaichou… Abarai Renji."

Ganju's eyes widened at this. "A-, a vice-captain?!" He turned to Ichigo and narrowed his eyes. _I know that Ichigo's strong, but this guy's way out of his league! Ichigo… No matter how much stronger you've gotten, you can't beat this guy!_

"Anyways…" Renji shifted his feet and tightened his grip on his Zanpakuto. "This is the end, Ichigo!" he yelled as he charged at him.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes and scooted back an inch before meeting Renji's charge head on, both of their blades clashing together as they glared at each other. "I've grown stronger, Renji," stated Ichigo as he swung his sword at Renji's head.

Renji easily dodged the attack and retaliated by slamming his own sword down on Ichigo, forcing him back until he had him pinned against a wall. "Oh really now?" The red-haired Shinigami grinned as he forced Ichigo's blade against his chin. "Don't be so cocky just because you managed you beat me in the Human World, baka! Any Shinigami who's ranked vice-captain or higher has their reiatsu dramatically weakened in order to prevent any unnecessary influences in the World of Living. Do you know what this means?" asked Renji as he pushed against Ichigo's blade even harder. A drop of blood trickled down Ichigo's chin and fell splat on the ground below.

… "It _means_ that I'm five times stronger than I was back then, dumbass!" roared Renji as he kicked Ichigo into the wall.

Renji narrowed his eyes as he watched orange-haired teen crash into the wall, thinking about the conversation that he had with Naruto just a while ago.

… _Renji blinked, confused. "You have a __**favor**__ to ask of me…?"_

_Naruto nodded. "You know about the ryokas that invaded Seireitei just a couple hours ago, right?"_

"_Well… yea, but-."_

"_I located three of the five ryokas near the southern area of the Palace of Remorseful Sin," stated Naruto. "One of them is the ryoka known as Kurosaki Ichigo, and I need you to-."_

_Renji's eyes widened at this. "K-Kurosaki… Ichigo…?"_

"_Yea," said the blonde vice-captain. "And I need __**you**__ to go and fight him."_

_The 6__th__ Division's vice-captain looked surprised. "You __**want**__ me to go and fight him? Well, I'm not complaining, but… why?"_

_Naruto tapped his chin as he thought about it. "Well… To be honest, I'm not really sure, but I sort of feel like he's someone that my fate's connected with… Someone that I knew in a past life, you know?"_

…

_Renji blinked. "Sorta gay don't you think?"_

"_OY! SHUT THE HELL UP, ABARAI!" raged Naruto with a comical scowl on his face. __His face suddenly turned serious as he looked at Renji with a level look in his eyes. "Anyways, I need you to do me this one favor, alright?"_

_Renji narrowed his eyes. "I understand…"_

…

Ichigo struggled not to cry out in pain as Renji kicked him hard in the stomach. "Che!" He quickly recovered from the attack and appeared behind Renji, slashing at his back.

Renji looked mildly surprised and stumbled back a step as he blocked Ichigo's attack with his Zanpakuto. "I recently defeated a 3rd Seat from one of the thirteen divisions," said Ichigo as he jumped back, avoiding the vice-captain's blade. "What was his name again…? Madarame Ikkaku, I think it was? That's only one rank below you, so I'm sure that I can defeat you as well, Abarai Renji!"

Renji's eyes widened in shock as he heard this. "What?!" _This weakling… defeated Ikkaku-san?! Impossible…! This guy's really starting to piss me off… I have no idea why Uzumaki-fukutaichou's interested in this weakling…_

"Che!" The angry red-haired vice-captain glared at Ichigo as he took up his stance. "Don't get so cocky just because you managed to defeat one 3rd Seat, you baka! You'll still never be able to defeat me!" Renji held out his blade sideways and passed his hand over it. "Howl, Zabimaru!"

Ichigo's eyes widened as Renji's Zanpakuto glowed and transformed into a six-part segmented blade; each segment wider than the previous one. The whip-like Zanpakuto had two pick-like protrusions on the front and back of each segment, the front ones much longer than the back ones. _Not this again…_ thought Ichigo as he readied himself.

Renji grinned at Ichigo as he held the blade out in front of him. "You're still a hundred years away from challenging me…" Renji charged at Ichigo, his Zanpakuto held high above his head.

"… ICHIGO!"

_Forty-five minutes later…_

Kira landed on the roof of the building as he scanned the area, looking for the area of battle that he had been informed about just a while back.

"There he is!"

Kira and four other members of the 3rd Division looked towards their right to see a bloody Renji lying on the ground. "Abarai-kun!"

The long blonde-haired vice-captain landed on the ground next to Renji and checked his pulse. _Dammit! It's barely there!_ He quickly looked up at the squad members next to him. "We need to get him help right away."

A squad member looked at the person next to him. "Quickly, get the 4th Division down here right now! He needs treatment right away!"

"There's no time for that!" said Kira. "You and you! Help me carry him over to our squad barracks while you three go and get the 4th Division down there!"

The Shinigami next to him nodded. "Yes sir!"

[3rd Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Kira and Hinamori looked down at the unconscious Renji, a worried look on both of their faces. "If only I had been a little faster…" said Kira sadly.

"It's not your fault, Kira-kun," assured Hinamori. "Anyways, let's see what's taking the 4th Division so long."

As they turned to leave, their eyes widened as they saw Byakuya standing in the doorway. "K-Kuchiki-taichou," stuttered Kira. "W-What are you d-doing here?"

"I called off the 4th Division," said Byakuya calmly despite his vice-captain dying before his very eyes.

Kira and Hinamori looked shocked. "B-But Kuchiki-taichou!" Hinamori cried out. "Why? Abarai-kun could die if we don't-!"

"Do not give me any excuses. To go into battle means that defeat is unacceptable," stated Byakuya as he closed his eyes. "I have no need for a fool who cannot comprehend that. He is an eyesore… Take him away this instant." And with that, he turned around and walked towards the door.

Hinamori clenched her hands into a fist and shot out of her chair. "Just a minute!" she exclaimed, causing Byakuya to look back at her. "I don't mean any disrespect, but you're making it sound as if Abarai-kun-!"

"Hinamori!" warned Kira as he grabbed his friend's arm. He turned and bowed to Byakuya. "My deepest apologies."

…

"My deepest apologizes," relented Hinamori finally, bowing as well.

Byakuya simply blinked and walked away. "Ugh…" Hinamori stuck her bottom lip out, her arms crossed. "That captain…"

Kira sighed as he stared down at his unconscious friend. "Well, we should probably place Abarai-fukutaichou in a holding cell."

Hinamori's eyes widened. "B-But Kira-kun!"

"Ooh scary," said a creepy voice behind them.

Kira and Hinamori turned to see Gin, Kira's captain, leaning against the wall, his hands inside his sleeves. "Still, what'd he havta talk like that for? Still as scary as ever, that rokubantai-taichou-san."

He walked over to Kira and Hinamori, his seemingly-permanent grin growing ever larger. "Don't ya worry now," he said, stopping in front of a worried Hinamori. "I'll call the 4th Division for ya."

Hinamori perked up when she heard this. "Really?"

"Really," said Gin in an almost sincere voice. "Izuru, go on ahead. I'll be there in a moment."

"Yes sir," replied Kira, bowing and walking out the front door.

Hinamori sighed and fell on her chair, exhausted. "Abarai-kun… Why did you go far as to fight the ryokas by yourself…? Could it have had to do something with Rukia-san…?"

... Meanwhile, a figure whose face was hidden by the shadows leaned against the wall by the door in front of the barracks, his arms crossed. He had remained motionless throughout the entire conversation that had just taken place.

After the conversation had ended, the figure remained still as Kira walked out of the barracks, passing by the figure without noticing him.

Gin walked out the door a few seconds later, stopping in front of barracks as he noticed the figure on his left. "What are ya doin' here?" asked Gin without turning his head to face the figure. "It ain't nice to spy on other people's conversations ya know?"

The figure, who's eyes were closed, opened them to reveal a pair of midnight-blue eyes. "Oh really? And what were you doing before all of this, Ichimaru?"

Gin's seemingly-permanent grin grew even wider at this. "I ain't doin' nothin'," he said as he held up his hands up in mock self-defense. "I was only passin' through the area when I heard 'bout poor old Abarai-fukutaichou-san, so I said to myself, 'I should go over there an' see what I can do.'"

…

"Jokin' jokin'," laughed Gin as he dropped his hands. "I was only doin' this on a request."

"A request…?" The figure narrowed his eyes as he stared at Gin. "Be careful, Ichimaru… You may think that you're fooling everybody, but a few of us are beginning to figure you out…"

Gin's grin suddenly seemed to turn even more dangerous than normal. "Oh, do ya now? I'd better be careful so I don't anger ya by accident, huh?"

The figure turned around and started walking away; Gin watched as he left, his grin growing even wider. After a few seconds, Gin continued on his way to the 4th Division Barracks.

A short figure that was spying on the two from the side of the 3rd Division Barracks stepped out from the shadows to reveal his short spiked white hair and turquoise eyes. He watched silently as Gin disappeared off into the distance, his eyes narrowed.

[6th Division Holding Cell, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_Thirty minutes later…_

Naruto burst through the door of the 6th Division Holding Cell, surprising Kira and Hinamori. "U-Uzumaki-fukutaichou!" exclaimed Kira. "W-What are you doing here?"

"I heard about what happened to Renji as I was passing by the 4th Division Barracks, so I rushed down here as fast as possible," explained Naruto. "So, how is he?"

"See for yourself," said Hinamori sadly as she turned back to face Renji.

Naruto bent over to see past Hinamori's shoulders, and his eyes widened in shock at what he saw. _W-What is this…? Gashes and cuts all over his body… A broken arm… Judging by the large blood spot on his bandages near his chest, he was cut really deep… Dammit! This is all my fault!_

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Will be he okay?" he asked quietly.

Kira smiled with a relieved look on his face. "Yea, he'll be fine now."

_Kurosaki Ichigo, huh?_ Naruto closed his eyes. "Were there any clues to the ryoka's whereabouts?"

Kira shook his head. "None. I scanned the area myself, but the only sign that the ryoka was there was the devastating damage that was done to the area. I found some traces of his reiatsu, but that's about it."

"I see…" Naruto opened his eyes. "For a ryoka to have done this to Renji… Renji is one of the top vice-captains that we have… If that ryoka was able to do _this_- Naruto gestured to Renji's torn up body- to him, then…"

Naruto tapped the hilt of his Zanpakuto as he thought about this. "I had heard that he had only just reacquired his Shinigami powers, and yet he's already at a vice-captain's level… I wonder what his goal is…"

"Well, I…" Hinamori paused before continuing. "I'm not sure if this is right, but I heard Abarai-kun mumbling about the intruder and Kuchiki Rukia…"

Naruto's eyes widened at this. "So his motive might have to do with this Kuchiki Rukia, huh? I see…"

Kira and Hinamori looked up in surprise as blonde vice-captain swerved around and headed for the door. "W-Where are you going, Naruto-fukutaichou?" asked Hinamori curiously.

Naruto paused by the door, his hands resting against the frame of the door. "I just need to think by myself for a while."

And with that, he slid open the door and walked out, leaving the three to themselves.

[Unknown Location]

_Later that night…_

A cloaked figure walked alongside a row of trees, the shadows hiding his face so that it was impossible to see who he/she was. The figure stopped at the edge of the forest that lay on his right and emitted a low high-pitched whistle from his mouth.

A figure that was hidden by the trees emerged from the edge of the forest and looked at the first figure. "So you've come." The figure's voice- obviously male, was calm and gentle, but it had an unnerving and deceptive tone to it.

The first figure looked up at the night sky. "The stars are bright tonight," he commented. This figure had a slightly deep and masculine voice that was strangely charismatic as well as commanding.

The second figure tilted his head to look at the night as well and breathed in the rich, cool air of the night. "You're right."

… "So, how's everything coming along?" inquired the cloaked figure.

The second figure remained silent for a full minute before responding. "Stage one has been completed on schedule. Stage two will proceed in two days just like we-."

"No," said the first figure as he shook his head. "Go ahead and proceed with stage two early first thing tomorrow morning; otherwise, we'll be behind schedule."

The second figure narrowed his eyes. "Very well then."

The cloaked figure nodded and started walking away, the second figure watching him until he was swallowed up by the shadows of the night.

* * *

**Well, thanks for reading the first chapter of my story! Feel free to like, dislike, critique, criticize, or just review.**

**Important information:**

**To answer a question from a review, Naruto is around 70 years old even though it's been over 250 years. How is this possible? Well, he could've been "reborn" into the Shinobi World or the World of the Living, or he could have lingered as a ghost, or some "higher power" could have stalled his coming into Soul Society for various reasons. I will be explaining this towards the later chapters of the story.**

**Translations:**

**- Soutaichou means captain-commander.**

**- Taichou means captain.**

**- Fukutaichou means vice-captain.**

**- Rokubantai means 6****th**** Division, and so on. (The rest of the division translations are on the list of the Gotei 13). Also, the reason that I use captain, taichou, and vice-captain, fukutaichou, is because saying jubantai-taichou and jubantai-fukutaichou sounds better than saying, "10th Division captain or 10th Division vice-captain), but for just the divisions, "10th Division or 10th Division Barracks" sounds better than saying "jubantai or jubantai barracks." It's just a little thing that I like, so sorry if anyone feels otherwise or is confused by it.**

**Follow, favorite, and review! Thanks!**

**The entire list of the Gotei 13 so that no one is confused on anything (I'll be posting the new list once it comes down to it in a couple of chapters):**

**1st Division (Ichibantai)**

**Captain: Yamamoto Genryusai**

**Vice-Captain: Sasakibe Chojiro**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown.**

**2****nd**** Division (Nibantai)**

**Captain: Soifon**

**Vice-Captain: Still in progress**

**3****rd**** Seat: Omaeda Marechiyo**

**3****rd**** Division (Sanbantai)**

**Captain: Ichimaru Gin**

**Vice-Captain: Kira Izuru**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**4****th**** Division (Yonbantai)**

**Captain: Unohana Retsu**

**Vice-Captain: Kotetsu Isane**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**5****th**** Division (Gobantai)**

**Captain: Aizen Sosuke**

**Vice-Captain: Momo Hinamori**

**3****rd**** Seat: Uchiha Pain**

**6****th**** Division (Rokubantai)**

**Captain: Kuchiki Byakuya**

**Vice-Captain: Abarai Renji**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**7****th**** Division (Nanabantai)**

**Captain: Komamura Sajin**

**Vice-Captain: Iba Tetsuzaemon**

**3****rd**** Seat: Momochi Zabuza**

**8****th**** Division (Hachibantai)**

**Captain: Kyoraku Shunsui**

**Vice-Captain: Ise Nanao**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**9****th**** Division (Kyubantai)**

**Captain: Tosen Kaname**

**Vice-Captain: Uzumaki Naruto**

**3****rd**** Seat: Hisagi Shuhei**

**10****th**** Division (Jubantai)**

**Captain: Hitsugaya Toshiro**

**Vice-Captain: Mastumoto Rangiku**

**3****rd**** Seat: Yuki Haku**

**11th Division (Juichibantai)**

**Captain: Zaraki Kenpachi**

**Vice-Captain: Kusajishi Yachiru**

**3****rd**** Seat: Madarame Ikkaku**

**12****th**** Division (Junibantai)**

**Captain: Kurotsuchi Mayuri**

**Vice-Captain: Kurotsuchi Nemu**

**3****rd**** Seat: Akon**

**13****th**** Division (Jusanbantai)**

**Captain: Ukitake Jushiro**

**Vice-Captain: Namikaze Minato**

**3****rd**** Seat: Uzumaki Kushina**


	2. The Meeting of Two Fates

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto or Bleach.

**Chapter 2: The Meeting of Two Fates**

_Those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their friends are worse than scum._

_- Hatake Kakashi_

[Deputy Official Chamber Two, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Naruto yawned as he rubbed his eyes. "I don't get why we have to get up so early for another damn vice-captain's meeting…" he grumbled. "Right, tōsan?"

Minato, who basically looked the same as he did in the Shinobi World except for his black Shinigami uniform, chuckled and crossed his arms, leaning against the wall next to the door of the room. He shook his head in amusement at his son's complaining, his front bangs waving from side-to-side. "Always complaining like always… Right, Naruto?" He turned his head as another vice-captain walked into the room. "Good morning, Kira-fukutaichou," he said in his normally cheerful voice.

"Good morning, Minato-fukutaichou," replied Kira, raising his hand in greeting. He looked around the room and blinked. "Hmmm… only four vice-captains here including me… I guess that no one likes to get up early, huh?"

Naruto chuckled nervously to himself as his dad shot him a joking look. Rangiku, who had just come out of the other room, walked over to Minato and took his arm, rubbing up to him as she did every time she saw him. "_Minato-fukutaichouuu_!" she said in a flirty tone.

Naruto, as well as Minato, looked annoyed by this. "Oy oy oy!" raged Naruto as he scowled at her. "Don't go rubbing up against my dad like that you whore! He's already married, so just-!"

He stopped talking as Rangiku grabbed him by the front of his uniform, yanking him so that they were face-to-face. "What was that, you stupid little blonde brat?!" she asked in a menacing tone.

"I SAID BACK OFF WHORE!" screamed Naruto, a comical scowl on his face.

…

"OWWW!" screamed Naruto as Rangiku slapped him across the face. Rangiku crossed her arms in a huff and looked the other way as Naruto raged at her. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR YOU BITCH?!" raged Naruto as he rubbed the side of his face viciously. "DON'T MAKE ME-!"

"AHHHHH!"

Minato and the other vice-captain's heads shot up as they heard this. Minato narrowed his eyes as he uncrossed his arms. _Judging by how faint the scream was, I'd say that it's not that far from here, but who…?_

Kira's eyes widened as he realized who it was. "Hinamori-kun!" he whispered, answering the question for Minato unintentionally. He quickly ran past the other vice-captains as he rushed out the door, speeding as fast as he can towards the source of the scream.

* * *

When Kira arrived at the scene, he saw Minato already there, comforting a sobbing Hinamori. _He's already here?_ thought Kira to himself in slight amazement.

"Minato-fukutaichou!" he called out. "What happened here?!"

Minato simply jerked his head up, motioning silently towards the tall tower in front of them. Kira's eyes widened in shock as he looked up at it. Rangiku and Iba appeared next to him and looked up at the tower as well, a look of disbelief appearing on their faces.

Aizen was pinned against the tower with his own Zanpakuto, his whole entire face and uniform dripping with blood. A drop of blood fell from his face and landed on the stream of blood that ran down from the edge of the tower onto the ground.

"Aizen-taichou…" whispered Rangiku.

"What the hell's going on here…?" asked Iba, staring at Aizen's lifeless body.

Hinamori's lips trembled as she slumped up against Minato. "AIZEN-TAICHOU!" she screamed, a stream of tears falling from her eyes.

… "What's all this ruckus so early in the mornin'?" asked a sinister voice behind everyone.

Minato and the others, including Hinamori, turned around to see Gin standing behind them, his usual grin on his face despite the situation. He glanced up at Aizen's body pinned against the wall of the tower for a second, looking at it as if it wasn't worth his time. "Uh oh, this here's a serious accident, no?" said Gin in a mocking tone. "Wonder how it happened? Looks as if he wen' an' got himself killed."

"Ichimaru-taichou…" whispered Iba.

Hinamori glared at Gin as she thought back to what Hitsugaya had told her the night before.

"_Watch out for the 3__rd__ Division," said Hitsugaya, his eyes serious. "Especially…"_

Hinamori's hand trembled as she clenched her hands into a fist. "WAS IT YOU?!" she screamed, quickly drawing her Zanpakuto. She charged at Gin despite Minato and the other vice-captain's surprised reactions, her katana raised high above her head.

Hinamori swung her sword down in an attempt to cleave Gin in two, but Kira quickly came in between them, blocking the attack with his sword. "K-Kira-kun…" she whispered. "Why?"

Kira had a very serious look on his face as he responded. "I am the vice-captain of the 3rd Division," he replied. "No matter what the reason, I can't allow you to point your blade at my captain."

"I'm begging you to move!" pleaded Hinamori, her eyes closing shut as she desperately tried to control herself.

Hinamori's eyes snapped open as she heard Gin moving away. She tried to break free from Kira, but he simply shook his head. "KIRA-KUN, PLEASE MOVE!" begged Hinamori as she retreated a few steps back.

"I told you that I can't!" replied Kira, holding his katana out in front of him.

"I'M TELLING YOU TO MOVE!" she screamed, her blade clashing against Kira's as she charged at him.

Kira slammed his blade against Hinamori's, his eyes blazing. "AND I'M TELLING YOU THAT I CAN'T!" he roared. "DON'T CONFUSE PRIVATE MATTERS WITH PUBLIC ONES, HINAMORI-FUKUTAICHOU!"

"AHHH!" screamed Hinamori, jumping back and brandishing her sword. "SNAP, TOBIUME!"

Her Zanpakuto seemed to be bathed in a pink glow as the side of her blade expanded to form a thin extension that formed a thick needle-like blade. Its handle turned light red, five-petal flower designs appearing on her rectangular tsuba.

"Stop, Hinamori!" Rangiku cried out. "Kira, stand down!"

"Raise your head, Wabisuke!" yelled Kira. He jumped into the air as Hinamori shot out a fireball from her Zanpakuto.

Minato narrowed his eyes as the two charged at each other, their blades about to clash. _This is getting out of hand…_

…

Kira and Hinamori's eyes widened in shock as a yellow blur suddenly appeared between them. "What…?" whispered Kira.

Minato, who had come in-between them, was holding both Kira and Hinamori's blade crossed against their throats, his eyes dead serious. "Neither of you… move a muscle…"

Hinamori stared at him with a shocked look on her face. "N-Namikaze-fukutaichou…!"

"I'll take it from here, Namikaze." Minato looked to the right to see Hitsugaya appear beside him. "Arrest them both," said Hitsugaya calmly.

"H-Hitsugaya-kun!" cried Hinamori as she was dragged away by Rangiku.

The 10th Division's captain narrowed his eyes. "_Hinamori_! Is this the time to be fighting each other with swords?! Shouldn't our first priority be taking Aizen-taichou down from here?"

Hinamori's eyes widened before she bowed her head. "I-…"

Hitsugaya blinked as she was taken away by Rangiku and turned to Minato and the others. "I'll turn in the report to the soutaichou," he stated as he turned to Iba. "As for those two…" Hitsugaya glanced at Hinamori and Kira as they were being led away before looking up at Aizen. "Put them in detention, and Iba- go and get some men over here to get Aizen-taichou down from there."

"Yes sir!" said Iba before running off towards the nearest barrack.

Gin walked over to Hitsugaya, a mock apologetic look on his face. "Sorry 'bout that, juban-taichou-san… to make ya waste yer time on one o' mine."

"Ichimaru… You were about to kill Hinamori, weren't you?"

Gin tilted his head to the side. "Well now, whatever are you talkin' 'bout?"

"I'll tell you this now," said Hitsugaya quietly. "If you make Hinamori spill one drop of blood… I'll kill you."

"That's scary," said Gin, grinning at him. "We'll have to watch her real close-like so no bad guys can git to her."

…

Minato narrowed his eyes. _This is getting bad… Ichimaru-taichou… I have a bad feeling about him and Aizen-taichou's murder…_

… _In the few hours that passed the tragic event, Ichigo ran into and somehow defeated the 11__th__ Division's captain, Zaraki Kenpachi. Through this, he had unknowingly gained a clue about his Bankai, as he would eventually find out._

_With the captain out of battle, the 11__th__ Division was considered abolished, and the Captain-Commander called for a captain and vice-captain's meeting the hour preceding the event…_

[Deputy Official Chamber Two, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_Two hours later…_

Chojiro, the vice-captain of the 1st Division, looked around as the last of the vice-captains entered through the door. _That's everyone…_

He pulled a scroll from his uniform and unrolled it, clearing his throat in order to get everyone's attention. "Approximetly two hours ago, one of the ryokas known as Kurosaki Ichigo managed to take on and defeat the 11th Division's captain, Zaraki Kenpachi-taichou. As the 3rd Seat Madarame Ikkaku was defeated by the ryoka as well, the 11th Division is to be considered inactive and incapable of carrying out any duties until further notice."

The vice-captains looked around at each other with a look of amazement on their faces. "The ryoka managed to actually _beat_ Zaraki-taichou?" asked Iba in a hushed whisper. "Impossible!"

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he heard this. _The ryoka defeated Zaraki-taichou? There's no way…! He was barely able to defeat Renji, and yet he was able to take on and win against a __**captain**__? Just what's going on here…?_

"Anyways," continued Chojiro. "Now that the 11th Division is incapacitated, the 3rd and 5th Division will be taking over for the 11th Division while regularly patrolling their own areas as well. The rest of the divisions are to go back to your normal duties, but keep a lookout for any ryokas. Also… If any of you or your division members happen to run into the ryoka Kurosaki Ichigo, you are to retreat or attempt to hold him off immediately. Do **not** try to engage him in battle, because as of his moment, we are to consider the fact that he is now at a captain-level."

He looked around the room before resuming. "Now, are there questions?"

…

Chojiro nodded. "Very well then. Everyone is to return to their division barracks immediately- this is the will of the soutaichou. Everyone is dismissed."

Naruto seemed to be in deep thought as he walked out of the deputy chamber. _Kurosaki Ichigo… The only way that I'm going to find out anything is by doing a little recon… I'm going to have to ask Kuchiki Rukia about the ryoka myself…_

[Palace of Remorseful Sin, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_One hour later…_

The two guards standing by the door of the prison cell stood at attention as they saw a blonde-haired figure walk towards them. "K-Kyubantai-fukutaichou… Uzumaki Naruto…" whispered the one on the left.

"I'm here to see the prisoner Kuchiki Rukia," stated Naruto as he stopped in front of them. "Please open the door."

The guard gulped as he looked Naruto straight in the eye. "M-My apologies, U-Uzumaki-fukutaichou!" he said. "We've been authorized not to let any visitors through unless they have permission from the soutaichou!"

Naruto gave him a small yet dangerous smile. "I understand, but all I'm asking for is a couple of minutes."

Both of the guards exchanged nervous glances before turning back to Naruto. "I-I'm sorry, but-."

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he lightly exerted his reiatsu, the force of it driving both of the guards to their knees. "I won't ask twice…" he said with a warning tone.

…

"P-Please go right a-ahead, U-Uzumaki-fukutaichou!" gasped the guard on the right, struggling to breathe under the heavy atmosphere.

After he withdrew his reiatsu, Naruto waited while the nervous guards opened up the door to Rukia's cell, stepping aside to let him through. "Thanks," said Naruto as he walked through the door.

When he stepped into the cell, he noticed a plain white mattress sitting on the left side of the door, a barred window on the end of the room. A fairly short black-haired figure stood near the window, facing the outside of it.

"Kuchiki… Rukia?" inquired Naruto as the door shut close behind him.

Rukia seemed to snap out of her deep thoughts as her head snapped towards the direction of the door. "K-Kyubantai-fukutaichou, Uzumaki Naruto," stuttered Rukia. "W-What are you d-doing here?"

"I wanted to ask you some questions," Naruto answered plainly.

Rukia looked confused. "Some… questions…?"

Naruto nodded and clasped his hands behind his back. "As you might have heard, five ryokas infiltrated Seireitei around a little less than a week ago. They were able to fight on par with two vice-captains, and we had just received a report on one of them having nearly _killed_ Kurotsuchi-taichou, as well as Zaraki-taichou. Now, the question that I want to ask you is _why_?"

Rukia blinked. "I-I'm afraid that I don't understand the question, Uzumaki-fukutaichou."

Naruto closed his eyes and sighed. "How is it that a human that you barely know is willing to go so far as to risk his life to save you? Why is it that he and his friends are risking so much to save someone that they barely know, nonetheless care about?"

Rukia stared at the floor as she clasped her hands in front of her. "I-… Well… That's something that you would have to ask Ichigo directly. Unfortunately, I do not know the answer to that question."

Naruto nodded and opened his eyes. "I see…" He turned around and knocked on the cell door. "I guess that I'll have to after all…"

Rukia looked up as the cell door slowly creaked open. Naruto stepped outside of the room, his hand resting against the arch of the doorway. "I'll go and find this Kurosaki Ichigo then… and I'll ask him myself."

"Just one thing, Uzumaki-fukutaichou," said Rukia.

Naruto looked back at her. "Yea?"

"Why do you care so much about the ryokas and them trying to rescue me?" asked Rukia. "I just don't understand what it has to do with-."

"I…" Naruto paused and gave her a sad smile. "To me, my friends… my comrades… my family… they mean the world to me…"

Rukia's eyes widened at this. "Your… friends…?"

Naruto nodded. "I may not know why this Kurosaki Ichigo wants to rescue you, but I _do_ understand the fact that he's trying to save a friend."

"Cya, Kuchiki," he added, walking out of the cell.

Rukia looked down at the ground as the cell door closed shut after him, thinking about what he had said.

… "_I may not know why this Kurosaki Ichigo wants to rescue you, but I __**do**__ understand the fact that he's trying to save a friend."_

"Ichigo…" she whispered as she turned around to look outside of the window.

"… Please be careful."

[Hidden Cave, Seireitei, Soul Society]

"Ugh…" Ichigo slowly opened his eyes as he woke up from his unconsciousness. "Where… am I…?"

He rubbed his head and tried to get up only to lie back down from the excruciating pain from his chest and stomach. He looked down and saw a giant scar on the base of his neck that ran all the way down diagonally to the mid-section of his stomach.

"So you're awake."

Ichigo turned his head to the side to see a black cat walking towards him. "Oh, Yoruichi-san… Did you bring me here?"

Yoruichi nodded, its golden eyes staring at him. Ichigo looked surprised. "I see… I'm surprised that you were able to carry me all the way here."

"Ah." Yoruichi seemed to smile at this. "I guess that it would be hard to believe that I could do that with _this_ form."

Ichigo blinked. "Huh? You mean that you have a different form?"

"I guess that I've never shown you _or_ your friends before." Yoruichi stretched out her front legs and walked over to the other side, standing in front of Ichigo. "Very well then. I'll show you my _true form_."

"Y-Your true form…?"

…

Thirty seconds later, Yoruichi chuckled as she put on an orange over-shirt over her black sleeveless and backless undershirt. "You're so innocent, aren't you, Ichigo?"

Ichigo crossed his arms in a huff as he comically scowled at her. "Shut up!"

"Huh?" Ichigo suddenly looked up as he sensed something quite some distance away. "Is that… Ganju?"

His eyes grew wide as he felt Ganju's reiatsu suddenly disappear. "N-No way…! It can't be…!" Ichigo shot up and grabbed Zangetsu on his way out the entrance.

Yoruichi crossed her arms as she watched him. "What are you doing, Ichigo? Your wounds haven't healed yet. If you go out there in your current condition… you'll die."

"It doesn't matter right now!" Ichigo clenched his teeth as he paused for a brief second. "I have to go and save Ganju!"

With that, he rushed out the entrance. "Wait, Ichigo!" cried Yoruichi. She suddenly narrowed her eyes as she watched Ichigo leave the hideout. _This reiatsu approaching us… It couldn't be…_

[Seireitei, Soul Society]

Ichigo landed safely on the ground a minute later, the flight object retracting its wing as Ichigo withdrew it. "Well, now to-."

"What?!" Ichigo's eyes widened as he saw a figure slowly approaching him. _This reiatsu… It must be a captain…! Dammit! I don't have time for this right now!_

"Don't worry," said the figure as he approached Ichigo. "Your friend is heading towards the Palace of Remorseful Sin to rescue your friend as we speak. There is no need for you to get involved as well."

"W-Who are you?" asked Ichigo.

As the figure drew closer, Ichigo saw that it was a spiky blonde-haired male with the standard black Shinigami outfit on. He carried a Zanpakuto with a tsuba in the shape of a whirlpool and an orange colored hilt with a mix of red spiral designs on it.

"Kyubantai-fukutaichou, Uzumaki Naruto," replied the figure, giving Ichigo a big grin.

_A vice-captain?!_ Ichigo looked shocked. "You're a vice-captain, and yet you have this much reiatsu?! Were you like a captain once or something?!"

Naruto frowned, the question obviously having taken him by surprise. He looked up at the sky, and then down at his hands. "Well, you see... My reiatsu might be considered monstrous, but I haven't met one of the requirements for becoming a captain. That's why."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. "I see… Well, anyways… I'm afraid that I need you to let me pass. I have to rescue my friend before-."

"I'm sorry," said Naruto abruptly, stopping him. Placing his hand on the hilt of his sword, he gave Ichigo a warning look. "As I said before, your friend has already left for the-."

"Che!" Ichigo scoffed as he grabbed Zangetsu from his back. "Don't kid with me right now! I don't have time for this crap, so if you won't let me pass, then…"

The bandages covering the Zanpakuto unwound to reveal the sleek black blade with the silver-white edge, and Ichigo charged at Naruto, his Zanpakuto held high above his head.

"… I'll have to force my way through!"

THUD! Naruto swiftly drew his sword halfway from its sheath and skillfully blocked Ichigo's attack, the force of the blow causing the very air itself to tremble.

Ichigo silently swore to himself as he clashed blades with Naruto. _Dammit! I was hoping to end this fight with this one blow! I guess that I was just hoping for too much…_

"Not bad for a newbie," grinned the blonde vice-captain. "Now, let's see if you defeating Renji was all skill or just luck!"

Naruto swung his Zanpakuto at Ichigo with impressive strength, forcing him back a few feet. Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he blocked the attack. _This guy… He says that he's a vice-captain, but he almost fights like a captain!_

Ichigo jumped into the air and used the bandage attached to the hilt of his sword to throw the sword like a dart at Naruto, incorporating the attack that his Hollow-self had used during his fight with Kenpachi.

Naruto, however, dodged the attack, the point of Ichigo's sword slamming into the ground below. "Not bad," grinned Naruto. "Now let's see if you can dodge this!"

Flash stepping to Ichigo's side, Naruto swung his leg at his torso, catching him by surprise. Ichigo quickly raised the flat of his blade in order to block the kick, but Naruto grinned, surprising him. "Not good enough."

"AHHH!" Ichigo went flying through the air and crashed into a nearby building, creating a giant hole in it.

"We're not done yet!" yelled Naruto, speeding towards Ichigo as he climbed out of the hole. He swung his Zanpakuto at him, feinting to the left and instead swinging it up in an attempt to cleave Ichigo's face from the chin up.

_Crap!_ Ichigo leaned backwards, barely dodging the vicious attack. The point of the blade, however, sliced Ichigo's chin and left a long cut. He winced in pain, but he quickly retaliated by using his sword to balance himself and kicked at Naruto's legs.

Naruto saw this and jumped into the air in a crouch, avoiding the kick and stabbing at the ground. Ichigo narrowly dodged the attack by a fraction as the point of the blade slammed into the ground near his leg.

"You're pretty skilled for a vice-captain," grinned Ichigo as he retreated backwards. "You're much more skilled then Renji… I'm surprised you aren't a captain yet."

The blonde Shinigami rested his katana against his shoulder, grinning back at Ichigo. "I'm 'pretty skilled?' You haven't even seen what I can do yet." He held his Zanpakuto out in front of him. "Also…"

Ichigo braced himself for an attack, trying to formulate a plan in his head as quickly as possible.

... "Too late," said a voice behind him.

Ichigo's eyes widened as he spun around as quickly as possible, but he failed to block the attack in time and went crashing into a nearby building. "You're surprised that I'm not a captain yet? Well, the truth is that I'm not skilled enough to be a captain yet," said Naruto. "Compared to the captains, I'm still _years_ away from being one of them if I just relied on my skills alone."

"On your own skills…?" To Ichigo's surprise, something about that statement bothered him. _What did he mean by that…?_

Ichigo winced as he got up, wobbling towards Naruto with his sword held out in front of him. _I'm still too weak from my fight with that Zaraki Kenpachi…_

Naruto sighed and, to Ichigo's surprise, sheathed his Zanpakuto. "W-What the hell are you-?"

The vice-captain held up his hand, silencing him. "I didn't just come here to fight you ya know. I wanted to test your skills, but I also wanted to ask you a question, Ichigo."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he slowly lowered his sword, still not sure on whether he could trust the newcomer or not. "What question?" he asked cautiously.

Naruto turned his head in the direction that the Palace of Remorseful Sin lied in, staying in that position for a while. Ichigo waited for him to ask the question, quietly grateful for the opportunity to rest. After a minute of silence, Naruto glanced at Ichigo from the corner of his eyes. "Why is it that you're willing to go so far to rescue Kuchiki Rukia when you barely know her? You only just met her, and yet you're willing to risk your life in order to save her."

Ichigo was surprised by the unexpected question, but his hard gaze softened for just a moment as he thought about the question. "Well, I-… I owe her a great debt… A great debt that I could never repay…"

"A… debt…?"

Ichigo nodded. "Rukia, someone who I had just met, was willing to give me her Shinigami powers if it meant being able to save a family that she had never even met before. She knew the consequences, and yet she willingly accepted the punishment in order to help me to save me family..." Ichigo sighed and stared off in the direction of the Palace of Remorseful Sin with an almost apologetic look in her eyes. "I can never repay the debt that I owe Rukia, but the least that I could do is rescue her from her underserving fate, right?"

Naruto bowed his head as he thought about what Ichigo had just said. "The least that you could do is rescue her, huh? I see…"

"She may not be someone that I care about enough to save, but she's a friend that risked her life to save mine, and I can't abandon that friend in need no matter what!" stated Ichigo.

Naruto's eyes widened at this. _Kakashi-sensei…_

… "_Those who break the rules are scum, but who abandon their friends are even worse that scum…" stated Kakashi as he looked at the three students that lay in front of him._

…

Naruto smiled sadly at the ground. "Kakashi-sensei," he said quietly. "I know that if you were here, you'd hit me across the head if I didn't help him… Heh… Please be with as I once more break the rules set by those above me, and help me to do what I did back when I was alive…"

He looked up after he said this and locked eyes with Ichigo. "Kurosaki Ichigo…"

Ichigo raised an eyebrow in question. "What?"

"… Thank you."

His eyes widened as he heard this. "What do you mean, 'thank you?'" asked Ichigo. "I don't understand what-."

Naruto looked up at the sky and smiled. "I'll help you rescue your friend, Ichigo."

"W-What? Really? But why?"

Naruto's eyes squeezed shut as he gave Ichigo a big smile. "You're willing to lay down your life to rescue your friend. How could I not?"

Ichigo mouth fell open as he tried to come up with something to say, but nothing came out. Finally he closed his mouth and just gave Naruto a small smile. "Uzumaki Naruto, huh? Well… you have my thanks."

Naruto nodded at him and turned around to leave. "You should go ahead and head back to where you came from. I have a feeling that your friend already returned there and is waiting for you."

Ichigo nodded in thanks and turned around to leave, drawing the flight object from his uniform and holding it out so it could spread its wing out. "I'll see you soon hopefully, Naruto. Also, after all this is over, you should come and meet my friends… I think that they'd like you a lot."

Naruto glanced at Ichigo out of the corner of his eyes and grinned. "I'm sure that I'd like them too."

And with that, Naruto flash stepped away, leaving Ichigo to himself.

[Sokyoku Hill Training Ground, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_The next day…_

Ichigo looked around the large training ground and whistled in amazement. "So this is where I'm gonna be training for my Bankai?"

"That's right," said Yoruichi, dropping down and landing in front of him. "Kisuke and I built this place a long time ago as a training ground. We used to come here all the time when we were kids, and we honed each other's skills here."

Ichigo scratched the back of his head. "I feel like I've seen this place somewhere before… Was it at Urahara-san's store…?"

Yoruichi smiled at this. "It _should_ seem familiar to you because Kisuke built the training ground underneath his shop with this place in mind."

"I see…" Ichigo dropped down on the ground and started to stretch out his legs. "Well, let's get to it then, Yoruichi-san!"

Yoruichi opened her mouth to answer, but she was disturbed by a noise coming from the entrance. "Oh, they're here!" said Yoruichi as she walked over to the entrance of the training ground.

Ichigo blinked. "Huh? You were expecting visitors?" He turned around, and his mouth fell open as he saw two figures standing in front of the entrance. "What?! Renji! Naruto! What are you two doing here?!"

Renji grabbed the hilt of his Zanpakuto and grinned at him. "Why do you think?" He drew his Zanpakuto and passed his hand over it. "Howl, Zabimaru!"

Ichigo's eyes widened as a large white baboon with a few black striped designs on it materialized next to Renji. A long white snake slithered out from behind the baboon and slid its way up to Renji's shoulder, hissing at Ichigo.

Naruto, although he hadn't released his Zanpakuto yet, was standing next to a strangely deathly pale figure with a thin and wiry body. He was cloaked in what seemed like a standard Shinigami uniform, but this one was white, and the figure also had very long hair that fell all the way down to the hem of his robe. The hair also fell down past his eyes, and when the figure pushed aside his long bangs, Ichigo saw that it was a male with strangely pale blue eyes and thin lips that seemed like it was drawn with a pencil.

"We've already achieved materialization," stated Renji as he glanced sideways at Naruto. Naruto rolled his neck as he slammed the point of his Zanpakuto into the ground, stretching out his arms and legs.

"Now all that's left is for us to achieve Bankai."

[Sokyoku Hill, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_The morning of the execution…_

Yamamoto Genryusai walked over to Rukia and leaned on his cane, his narrowed eyes unreadable as he stared at the prisoner. _It seems that everyone has gathered…_ "Do you have any last words, Kuchiki Rukia?"

Rukia looked at everyone that was present there and smiled sadly as her eyes found Byakuya.

… "Yes," she whispered. "Just one thing…"

_Meanwhile…_

"This is bad, Kiyone!" exclaimed Sentaro as he stared out the window. "It looks like the execution's about to start! Ain't the captain ready yet?!"

"Pipe down! I can hear you!" yelled Kiyone. "Don't yell for every little thing, smelly-pit goatie monkey!"

She turned and ran over to the large dual wooden _doors_ that lay on the end of the room. "CAPTAIN!" she exclaimed as she pounded on the door. "CAPTAIN!"

Sentaro crossed his arms in a huff and frowned comically. "You're yelling too…" he grumbled.

"Captain, how much longer?! The execution's about to start!" said Kiyone with a frantic tone in her voice.

The large wooden doors suddenly creaked open slowly; smoke pouring out of the doors and into the room.

"C-Captain…" whispered Kiyone.

… "Sorry for the wait," said Ukitake as he climbed out of the doors. "Releasing the seal took me a bit longer that I had thought, but… now we can go. Now, after the appeal to the Central Office of Forty-Six has failed, we no longer have any choice but this…"

As the smoke cleared up, Ukitake was shown holding a large wooden shield and a long black rod in his hands.

"Let's go!"

[Sokyoku Hill Training Ground, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Naruto stabbed his sword into the ground and picked up his scabbard that was lying on the ground next to him. After putting on and adjusting the scabbard around his waist, Naruto looked over at Ichigo who was on the ground next to him doing push-ups.

"You ready, Ichigo?" asked Yoruichi as she appeared in front of the two. "I just got word that the execution is about to begin. We need to hurry, or we might not make it."

Ichigo, after doing his last push-up, got on his hands and used his arms to flip over onto his feet. "Yea, I'm ready," stated Ichigo as he grabbed Zangetsu from the ground. "Let's do this thing."

_Back in Sokyoku Hill…_

A giant majestic phoenix erupted from the halberdier, spreading its wings and screeching as it stared at Rukia. "Kikoo!" stated the Captain-Commander as he stared up at the phoenix. "This is the true form of the Sokyoku blade, and the final enforcer of the death penalty… Once the Sokyoku pierces the criminal, the execution will end."

Soifon stared up at the Sokyoku in awe, her eyes wide. _So this is the Sokyoku…_

Rukia bowed her head as the Sokyoku spread its wing in preparation of its flight. _Ichigo is safe… I am content…_

…

"Huh?" Rukia opened her eyes in confusion. _Why hasn't the Sokyoku pierced me yet…? What's going on…?_

"Are you alright, Rukia?"

Rukia's eyes grew wide as she stared up at the figure in front of her, recognizing his voice and the orange hair.

… "I-Ichigo…?"

_To be continued…_


	3. Ichigo Howls! This Is My Bankai!

**Disclaimer: **Still the same.

**Important Message:** If it seems like I copied parts of some chapters from other stories, then let me clear up any questions or concerns that you guys might have. I actually got some ideas from like two or three chapters off of **multiple** stories, not just one. I took some ideas from the stories, tweaked it a little bit, and made it my own. I actually got permission from like one or two writers to use their ideas, so it's like I'm some kind of copycat or something. Any plots or arcs from here on are completely original or taken from the Naruto Shippuden storyline, so just keep that in mind.

**Chapter 3: Ichigo Howls! This Is My Bankai!**

_The true measure of a shinobi is not how he lives but how he dies. It's not what they do in life but what they did before dying that proves their worth._

_- Jiraya_

[Sokyoku Hill, Seireitei, Soul Society]

The captains and vice-captains below stared up at the scene above in shock, unable to comprehend what was going on. Isane's eyes were wide with shock, her whole body trembling as if she had just seen a monster. _W-Who is this person…? He stopped the Sokyoku with just one hand…?! It's impossible…!_

...

"I-Ichigo!" Rukia as she stared up at the orange-haired figure in front of her. "Is that really you, Ichigo?!"

Ichigo frowned. "Well, of course it is," he said. "I've come to rescue you!"

Rukia bowed her head as she felt tears forming in her eyes. "You idiot…" she whispered. "I told you, didn't I…?"

"Huh?"

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO RESCUE ME, YOU BAKA!" yelled Rukia as her head shot up.

Ichigo blinked. "_HUH_?!"

Rukia scowled at him as her whole body flailed in anger. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO RESCUE ME! WHY DID YOU COME TO RESCUE ME?! YOU BAKA! I TOLD YOU NOT TO RES-!"

"OY OY OY!" retorted Ichigo. "What do you mean, 'why did you come to rescue me?!' I came to _rescue_ you! You should be _thanking_ me, baka!"

"I'm not the baka!" scowled Rukia. "You're the baka!"

"SHUT IT, BAKA!" roared Ichigo. "YOU'RE THE BAKA, _BAKA_!"

"BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA!" yelled Rukia.

"Heh…" Ichigo grinned as he looked at Rukia. "Well anyways, I came to rescue you, so it's too late to argue about it."

Rukia appeared startled by this, and she smiled sadly as she stared down at the ground below. "I see… You never change, do you, Ichigo?"

Ichigo yawned as he stretched out his free arm. "Nope!" He turned his gaze to the Sokyoku which he was holding back with one hand. "Now, about this…"

"Whoa!" Ichigo stumbled as the phoenix reared back and retreated, flapping its wings as it prepared to charge again.

"I-Ichigo!" exclaimed Rukia. "Run! Run now while you have a chance! You won't be able to survive its attack a second time!"

Ichigo narrowed his eyes and held his Zanpakuto out in front of him. "Don't worry about me, Rukia… I'll stop this thing no matter what!"

* * *

The crowd below looked up in amazement as they saw Ichigo holding back the Sokyoku. _I-Impossible…!_ said Soifon to herself in amazement. _The Sokyoku is said to contain to contain the offensive and defensive abilities of one million Zanpakutos, and yet this __**kid**__ is able to hold it back with just __**one hand**__…? Just who is he...? Just **what** is he...?_

Soifon's eyes widened as a long velvet-colored rope suddenly appeared out of nowhere and wrapped itself around the Sokyoku's neck. A golden pole that was attached to the end of it flew through the air and slammed into the ground, stabilizing the rope.

Shunsui suddenly appeared in front of the pole and placed his hand on it. "Yo, Ukitake! You sure like to make people wait, don't ya?"

"My bad," replied Ukitake as he stared up at the Sokyoku. "Releasing the shield took me longer than I thought, but… now we're good to go!"

_What?!_ Soifon stared at the shield in disbelief. _T-That's the Shihoin house seal!_

"Omaeda!" yelled Soifon as she turned to her 3rd Seat. "Stop them right now!"

Omaeda looked surprised. "What?! Me?!"

_Dammit!_ thought Soifon. Unsheating her Zanpakuto, she rushed towards Ukitake. "I don't have time for this! I'll do it myself then, you blubbering fatass!"

Meanwhile, Minato, who was observing this scene calmly from not far away, simply smiled as Soifon charged at his captain. _Too late, Soifon-taichou_…

_I won't make it in time!_ she said to herself as she saw the rope beginning to glow.

The end of the glowing rope suddenly burst into flames, and the flame quickly travelled up the rope and towards the Sokyoku.

BOOM! Soifon shielded her eyes with her arm as the Sokyoku above them exploded, large chunks of fire raining down on the people below. _I-Impossible!_

* * *

Ichigo grinned as the Sokyoku exploded, performing a backflip and landing on the scaffold with his sword in hand. "Now then…"

"I-Ichigo, wait! What are you trying to do?!" asked Rukia.

"Keep quiet and watch," replied Ichigo, narrowing his eyes. Grabbing the cloth attached to Zangetsu, he threw his sword up into the air and twirled it in the air, the sword spinning faster and faster until it was just a large blur in the sky.

_Now!_ Ichigo suddenly jumped into the air, yanking the Zanpakuto by the cloth and throwing it at the scaffold with all his strength. The blade of the Zanpakuto sped through the air and buried itself in the scaffold. Ichigo propelled himself off of a solid surface of air and flew towards the scaffold, his eyes turning clear-blue as he channeled his reiatsu through his body and into his legs.

"Take… THIS!" he roared as he slammed his feet on the hilt of the blade.

THUD! A giant cloud of dust enveloped the whole entire area as the scaffold exploded, slowly dispersing to reveal a giant chunk of the scaffold completely destroyed.

… "You never shut up about how I shouldn't rescue you and how I should just go home, but… I told you, didn't I? Your opinions are just gonna keep getting ignored from this point on."

Rukia smiled sadly as she stared up at Ichigo, who was carrying her with one arm. "Yea… you did, didn't you…?"

"OY, ICHIGO!"

Ichigo and Rukia turned to see Renji waving at them from below, an unconscious Shinigami in his arm. "RENJI!" exclaimed Rukia. "IS THAT REALLY YOU, RENJI?! I'M SO GLAD THAT YOU'RE OK!"

"_Oook_!" said Ichigo. He lifted Rukia into the air with one hand as he looked at Renji with an almost bored look on his face. "Get ready, Renji!"

Rukia blinked. "Huh?"

… "Wait, Ichigo…" said Renji nervously. "Y-You're not gonna-."

"Alright!" yelled Ichigo. "And… CATCH!"

"AHHHHH!" screamed Rukia as she sped towards a freaked-out Renji.

"ICHIGO, YOU BAKA!" yelled Renji. He frantically waved his arms in the air, trying to catch Rukia.

THUD! Renji went flying as Rukia hit his arms, landing with an "oomph" as he hit the ground hard. "ICHIGO, YOU BAKA!" screamed Rukia as she shook her fist at him.

"Go, Renji!" yelled Ichigo as he rested the blade of his Zanpakuto on his shoulder. "Go and take Rukia far away from here!"

Renji looked surprised. "I-Ichigo…"

"I won't forgive you if anything happens to her!" stated Ichigo. "Remember your job, Renji!"

…

Renji nodded, a determined look creeping into his eyes. "Got it!"

And with that, he turned around and started turning away from the group of captains and vice-captains.

* * *

Soifon saw Renji running away and quickly turned to her 3rd Seat and the other vice-captains. "Omaeda- don't just stand there! Go and chase after him you lazy idiot! All of you vice-captains, go!"

The vice-captains Isane and Chojiro looked to their respective captains for approval, and when they got it, they nodded and chased after Renji.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. _Dammit! They're chasing after Renji! I-!_

His eyes suddenly widened then softened as he saw a blonde figure speeding towards the vice-captains. _Well, what do you know…? That idiot's late._

[Central 46 Compound, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Hitsugaya's eyes widened as he arrived at the front of the Central 46 Compound, thinking back to what Kira had said.

... _"Sh__ouldn't you be worried about Hinamori-kun, Hitsugaya-taichou…?" asked Kira with a serious look on his face._

_..._

"Howdy, Hitsugaya-taichou."

Hitsugaya looked up with a look of disbelief of his face as he saw two figures standing in front of him. _I-Impossible… What is this…?_

"A-Aizen…?"

_Back at Sokyoku Hill…_

"Abarai-fukutaichou, please stop!" cried Isane as she, Chojiro, and Omaeda chased after him. "Please stop, or we'll have to use necessary force!"

Renji looked back as ran and swore. _Dammit! They're gaining up on me! At this rate, I won't-!_

Isane and the others suddenly stopped as something like a yellow blur flickered in front of them. "W-What?! Uzumaki-fukutaichou!" exclaimed Omaeda. "W-What are y-you-!"

"Get going, Abarai!" said Naruto as he glanced behind him.

"U-Uzumaki-fukutaichou!" exclaimed Renji. "What are you doing here?!"

"Hurry up and go!" ordered Naruto. "Don't let Ichigo's sacrifice be in vain, baka!"

Naruto turned back to the two vice-captains and the 3rd Seat and narrowed his eyes. "Now… I really don't wanna fight, so please stand down, you three. I'm sure that none of you guys really want to do this, so just-."

Isane unconsciously stepped back as she grabbed the hilt on her sword. "I-I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that w-we can't do that!"

Naruto closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I see…" He opened his eyes and slowly reached for the hilt of his sword. "Very well then…"

"We won't let you do that, Uzumaki-fukutaichou!" exclaimed Omaeda as he pulled out his Zanpakuto. "Smash 'em to bits, Gegetsuburi!"

"Run, Itegumo!" cried Isane.

"Pierce, Gonryōmaru!" exclaimed Chojiro as he held his Zanpakuto out in front of his face.

Naruto flickered to Omaeda's side and grabbed him by the neck, tripping him and slamming his face into the ground. He quickly swerved around and blocked Isane's lunge. "Stand down, Uzumaki-fukutaichou!" begged Isane.

"No way!" exclaimed Naruto as he pushed her away his with sword. "I'm sorry about this, Kotetsu-fukutaichou."

He suddenly flickered to her side and feinted for her right, but instead flipping his Zanpakuto over and slamming the hilt of his sword into Isane's back.

"Not so fast!" exclaimed Chojiro as he ran towards Naruto.

He swung his sword at Naruto, who dodged and retaliated by flicking his sword at Chojiro's arm and giving him a two-inch cut. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he jumped backwards, dodging a downwards slash from the 1st Division's vice-captain. _If I remember correctly, Sasakibe-fukutaichou is one of the more skilled vice-captains… Even so…_

Naruto used the tip of his blade to send a clump of dirt flying at Chojiro's face, blinding him momentarily. Chojiro lifted his arm and used it to shield his arms, but Naruto used this opportunity to flash step to his side, kneeing him in the stomach and quickly turning over and slamming his elbow into Chojiro's back.

"Ugh…" groaned Chojiro as he fell to the ground, falling unconscious.

Naruto sighed and sheathed his blade, staring down at the defeated vice-captain. _It's a good thing that he didn't wanna fight, or this would've taken a whole lot longer to finish…_

Naruto then looked up and glanced over at the broken scaffold where Ichigo was at. "Wait… Where'd he go…?" he wondered.

…

"NARUTO, DUCK!"

Naruto's eyes widened as he crouched down, a blade passing dangerously close over his head. _This reiatsu…_

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he jumped backwards, unsheathing his blade. "Kuchiki-taichou..." he whispered.

Byakuya, who was standing in front of Naruto, blinked as he stared calmly at the blonde-haired vice-captain. "Uzumaki-fukutaichou," said Byakuya quietly, his sword held out by his side. "What are you doing?"

"I'm saving Kuchiki Rukia obviously," answered Naruto. "What else?"

Naruto suddenly glanced to his right as Ichigo appeared next to him. "Ichigo…"

"Sorry I'm late," said Ichigo. "I had a little run-in with a few guys on my way here, but now…" Ichigo glanced over at Byakuya with a serious and determined look in his eyes. "… I'm ready!"

"Naruto!"

Naruto glanced behind him, staring at his dad out of the corner of his eyes. "Tōsan."

"It looks like I made it in time," said Minato, sighing in relief. "Naruto, let's get going."

Naruto nodded. "Got it." He turned to Ichigo, who had a confused look on his face. "Anyways, Ichigo, I have to go and take care of something. I'll leave things here to you."

Ichigo grinned. "Of course!"

"Then cya later," said Naruto. He turned to his dad and nodded. "Let's get going, tōsan."

And with that, he and Minato disappeared.

…

"Now…" Ichigo turned to Byakuya, who was staring at him, an unreadable look on his face. "Let's do this, Kuchiki Byakuya!"

[Central 46 Compound, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_Ten minutes later…_

Naruto and Minato appeared in front of the Central 46 Compound five minutes later, glancing at the broken-down door with a look of surprise on their faces. "The door… It seems that he was here after all," stated Minato seriously. "Were we too late after all…?"

"What do you mean?" asked Naruto.

Minato shook his head. "Never mind… Let's go!"

* * *

Once they got inside, they looked on in disbelief at the scene that lied before them. The whole chamber was covered in ice, and Aizen was standing over an unconscious Hitsugaya and Hinamori with Gin standing behind him; Unohana and another figure next to him stood towards the right of the door.

The figure was short with long black hair tied into a bun at the end with two locks of his hair bound with metal hair cuffs falling loosely and framing the sides of his face. Although he was obviously male, he had an androgynous face along with a slender frame.

"H-Hitsugaya-taichou!" exclaimed Naruto. "And Aizen-taichou! What's going on here?!"

"Why, if it isn't Uzumaki-fukutaichou and Namikaze-fukutaichou," said Aizen calmly. "It's nice to see familiar faces."

"Aizen… Sosuke!" roared the figure beside Unohana. He drew his Zanpakuto from its sheathe and charged at Aizen. "I'll kill you for this!"

Minato narrowed his eyes. _Dammit! He's not thinking straight!_

Aizen blinked as he slowly drew his blade from its sheathe. As he swung his sword for the kill, his eyes widened in surprise as Minato drew his blade halfway from its sheathe and blocked the swing. "I won't let you do that, Aizen-taichou," said Minato calmly.

The figure stopped charging, a surprised look on his face. "N-Namikaze-fukutaichou…"

"Haku, step back," ordered Minato, keeping his eyes on Aizen. "This isn't just someone that you can take on by yourself. Don't let your emotions cloud your judgment, understood?"

"Namikaze-fukutaichou," said Aizen slowly. "How did you know that I was here?"

"It's simple," replied Minato. "I _didn't_ know that you were here."

Aizen narrowed his eyes. "What…?"

"I was actually expecting Ichimaru-taichou to be here," said Minato. "I never expected _you_ to be here, but it doesn't matter now. I'll stop you both right here and right now!"

Aizen chuckled at this. "How arrogant of you, Namikaze-fukutaichou… If you're so sure about this, then I will show you the error of your resolve."

Minato glanced behind him at Unohana and Haku. "Unohana-taichou and Haku-sanseki, please grab Hitsugaya-taichou and Hinamori-fukutaichou and take them to the 4th Division Barracks."

Unohana remained still for a moment before nodding. "Very well then. Yuki-sanseki, please assist me."

Haku sighed before sheathing his sword. "Understood, Unohana-taichou."

Minato turned his eyes back to Aizen and forced him back with an array of swings. "Aizen-tai-, no, I mean _Aizen_... I'm guessing that you won't stand down peacefully?"

"You are correct, Namikaze-fukutaichou," said Aizen, raising his blade at him. "You cannot defeat my Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis… Now, what will you-?"

Aizen's eyes narrowed and raised his blade, blocking Naruto's attack as he rushed at him. "Uzumaki-fukutaichou…"

Aizen glanced behind him as Gin placed his hand on the hilt of his Zanpakuto. "It's quite alright, Gin. I'll take care of them myself."

"So that's the secret, huh?" grinned Naruto. "My tōsan told me all about it… I'm the only one in the entire Gotei 13 that hasn't seen your Kyoka Suigetsu in its Shikai form because I joined in so late."

Aizen seemed to be amused by this. "Oh, is that right…? Well, in the Gotei 13, I suppose that's true..."

Minato glanced at Unohana and Haku until they exited the chamber safely. "Naruto, are you ready?"

Naruto nodded. "I hope so."

Naruto and Minato's eyes suddenly flared as they turned clear-blue. "Get ready, Aizen," said Naruto with narrowed eyes. "This is the end of the line for you!"

"Come on then," said Aizen amusedly. "If that's the case, then I will crush your feeble attempts one at a time."

Naruto and Minato both raised their Zanpakutos and pointed them at Aizen, a massive burst of reiatsu emitting from the both of them.

"Rotate violently, Shiro Kaze Shuriken!"

"Echo, Raijin!"

[Sokyoku Hill, Seireitei, Soul Society]

…

Byakuya blinked, a look of disbelief on his face. _T-This is…_

Ichigo stood around twenty feet away from Byakuya, his blade resting against his shoulder. "You can't beat me with those skills anymore, Kuchiki Byakuya!"

A giant crack over thirty feet long and ten feet deep split across the terrain next to a stunned Byakuya.

"I'll say it again… It's called 'Getsuga Tensho,'" said Ichigo.

"I see…" Byakuya blinked, a calm look on his face. "So you think that a lucky strike will guarantee your victory? How foolish of you…"

"I'll say one more time," said Ichigo as he stabbed Zangetsu into the ground next to him. "Use your Bankai, Kuchiki Byakuya! I will beat you no matter what!"

Byakuya closed his eyes and remained still for a brief moment before answering. "Stab the heavens, eh…? An impudent name… Very well. If you wish it so strongly, then burn the sight of my Bankai deeply into your eyes."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes as Byakuya opened his eyes, lifting his Zanpakuto into the air, hilt up. Ichigo's narrowed eyes then widened as Byakuya slowly released his grip on his sword, letting it fall through the air.

_He let go… of his sword…_

"Do not worry," reassured Byakuya. "I will not make you regret it. Before that, you will turn to dust and vanish from my sight…"

Ichigo looked on in shock as the blade seemed to sink into the ground, two rows of towering blades rising from the ground on either side of Byakuya.

"Ban Kai... Senbonzakura Kageyoshi."

Ichigo stared blankly ahead in shock as the two rows of blades suddenly scattered into millions of tiny fragments of blades, resembling a countless number cherry blossoms scattering in the wind.

_Dammit!_ Ichigo clenched his teeth as he grabbed Zangetsu from the ground, rushing at Byakuya with his sword raised for the kill.

A giant wave of blade fragments sped towards Ichigo as he ran towards Byakuya; Ichigo dodged to the side and continued pushing forwards. "AHHH!" yelled Ichigo as he slashed at Byakuya.

"Too slow," commented Byakuya as a wall of blades rose to protect him.

Ichigo jumped into the air before an orb of blades could reach him, narrowly avoiding it. "That won't work," stated Byakuya calmly as a giant sphere of blades came speeding at Ichigo.

_Oh ****!_ swore Ichigo as he slashed at a stream of blades rushing at him. He quickly swerved around in order to counter another stream, but he was too slow; a giant circle of blades quickly closed in on him, and all Ichigo could do was glance around helplessly through narrowed eyes.

…

"Can you see now?" asked Byakuya as he calmly stared at a fallen Ichigo on the ground on all fours. "Your Zanpakuto is impressive all right, but even you cannot avoid Senbonzakura Kageyoshi."

Ichigo chuckled quietly as he coughed up blood. "I see… It's my fault… I should've figured that I couldn't beat a Bankai while I'm still using a Shikai…"

Byakuya's eyes narrowed at this. "Be careful how you speak, boy… From the way you said that, you're making it sound as if you have actually achieved Bankai…"

"Ah… yea," said Ichigo as he slowly stood up. He raised his blade and pointed it at Byakuya, grasping the hilt with both hands. "I did…"

Byakuya's eyes widened. "What...?"

"Get ready, Kuchiki Byakuya…" stated Ichigo slowly. As he channeled his reiatsu throughout his body, his eyes glowed as it turned clear-blue.

… "_BAN KAI_!"

[Central 46 Compound, Seireitei, Soul Society]

"Rotate violently, Shiro Kaze Shuriken!"

"Echo, Raijin!"

As Naruto's Zanpakuto began to glow, it shrunk down and transformed into a metallic silver-white shuriken with the four bases more edged than curved. Minato's Zanpakuto, on the other hand, shrunk in size, and once it finished transforming, Minato was seen holding a three-bladed kunai with a metallic silver-white blade and a white handle that had the kanji for "thunder" written vertically on it in black.

Aizen's eyes slightly widened at the sight of Naruto's Shikai. "So that's what your Zanpakuto looks like," he said amusedly. "A plain old shuriken…"

Naruto laughed out loud. "A plain old shuriken…? Then why don't you try it out, Aizen!"

Aizen swiftly blocked Naruto's attack as he rushed at him, Naruto's blade clashing against his. Naruto used the edge of his shuriken and twisted it, disarming Aizen.

Aizen didn't seem surprised at all by this move, and he quickly reacted by twisting to the side and grabbing the hilt of his sword before Naruto could. "Impressive move, Uzumaki-fukutaichou, but not good enough," stated Aizen as he slashed at him. "I'm barely putting in any effort to see what you can do, and this is all that you're capable of? How disappointing."

Naruto grinned as he blocked the attack, and Aizen ducked as Naruto's shuriken swung over his head, the shuriken making a metallic whistling sound as it passed over his head.

Aizen reacted by feinting for Naruto's left, slashing at his right instead and giving him a deep cut. Naruto grimaced and jumped back, holding his wounded arm with his free arm.

"Naruto, cover me!" said Minato as he held his kunai blade down.

He suddenly seemed to disappear as he appeared next to Aizen, swinging his kunai at him. Aizen, despite his impressive speed, was barely able to dodge the attack. Minato quickly flipped over and seemed to flicker over to Aizen's side, kicking at his back.

"Tōsan, on your right!" Naruto called out.

Minato swiftly stopped his leg in mid-kick and instead spun over and kicked at his right, giving Naruto a quick grin.

Aizen grinned as well and blocked the kick with relative ease, turning over and slashing downwards at him. Minato suddenly channeled a stream of lightning through his kunai and blocked the attack, sparks flying everywhere. Minato instantly reacted by jumping into the air and spinning in mid-air, slamming his foot into Aizen's blade and trapping it on the ground.

Aizen seemed surprised by this, and Minato swiftly followed that move by flipping over and slamming his foot on Aizen's head.

The traitor grimaced slightly as he skidded back a couple of inches. "Relying on your son's help in order to counter my Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis…"

Minato shrugged at this. "It's not cheating, Aizen."

Aizen chuckled as if what Minato had said was a joke. "It has been said that there hasn't been someone with your speed in over a hundred years… At this rate, even _I _might have a little trouble dealing with you."

"You got that damn right!" exclaimed Naruto. He narrowed his eyes right after he said that, tapping deep into his mind.

… "_Naruto, huh?" growled a deep and malice voice._

"_Kurama… This sucks, doesn't it?" said Naruto exasperatedly._

"_What does?" asked Kurama._

_Naruto sighed. "Ever since I died, I couldn't figure out how to use Chakra Mode, and I can't use Sennin Mode at all… I feel so helpless, you know? It's like my overall strength has been reduced by half!"_

_Kurama snorted at this._

"_Anyways, if this keeps going on like this, then I might need some of your reiatsu," said Naruto. "I-."_

"Do you feel weak, Uzumaki-fukutaichou?"

Naruto blinked. "Huh?"

"I said, 'do you feel weak?'" repeated Aizen. "Do you feel weak now that you don't have full access to your former powers? Do you feel helpless? You went from being the former savior of the Shinobi World to being an insignificant vice-captain. How does that feel, Uzumaki-fukutaichou?"

Naruto's eyes widened in shock; he opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

…

Aizen's eyes narrowed as he smiled maliciously. "Are you surprised, Uzumaki-fukutaichou? In all honesty, I'm surprised that you still retain most of the memories of your past life. It would be... _disappointing_ if you somehow lost those memories, am I right?"

Minato narrowed his eyes as he stared hard at Aizen. "Aizen, you… How the hell do you know about Naruto and his past life…? Just what the hell do you want?"

Aizen blinked. "What do I want?" he asked as if he hadn't understood the question. "I highly doubt that someone such as you could comprehend such a thing, Namikaze-fukutaichou. What I seek is to evolve into a higher being, putting other matters aside."

"To evolve… into a higher… being…?" whispered Minato. He suddenly grinned unexpectedly. "You've gotten good at telling jokes, Aizen."

Aizen ignored this comment and instead looked up at the ceiling. "Kaname should be done by now…"

Minato held his kunai out in front of him, the blade pointing at the two traitors. "So Kaname's a traitor as well…? I don't know what you meant by him being done by now, but you're not going anywhere, Aizen!"

Aizen closed his eyes and sighed exasperatedly as if he was talking to a child. "I have already put aside quite some time to have this conversation with you two, Namikaze-fukutaichou, but I must get going now. Otherwise, catching my pawn could become even more bothersome."

Naruto grimaced as he got into a stance, getting ready to launch an attack at the slightest movement. "You're not going anywhere, traitor!" he said venomously.

Aizen opened his eyes after a brief moment and glanced at Gin out of the corner of his eyes. "Gin."

Gin, who had been standing calmly by Aizen's side, nodded. His arm suddenly snapped out to his side, and a long piece of white cloth flew out of his sleeve and wrapped itself around the duo before either Naruto or Minato could react.

"Before I go, allow me to congratulate you on being one of the few who were able to find me- even if you were seeking out the wrong person," said Aizen as he began to disappear behind the bindings that were slowly closing in on them. "I sense a familiar reiatsu in the direction of Sokyoku Hill. I sincerely hope that it isn't your wife, Namikaze-fukutaichou… Farewell."

"AIZEN!" roared Minato as he charged at them. "BAN-!"

Minato shielded his eyes as the two traitors suddenly disappeared in a flash of white light. _Dammit! I was too late!_

"T-Tōsan…"

Minato turned around to see Naruto staring at him, his eyes wide. "Were you really about to use your-?"

Naruto stopped talking as his dad held up his hand, silencing him. "I'm sorry, Naruto," apologized Minato. "I guess that I just lost my cool in the heat of the moment."

Naruto gave him a small grin. "Well, it would've been cool to see it," he said. "I've never seen it before, so…"

"Heh… Well, you might see it sooner than you think," said Minato with a sad smile. His eyes suddenly turned serious as he crouched down and glanced towards the entrance of the chamber. "Anyways, Naruto… Hurry and rush back to Sokyoku Hill as fast as you can. I have a bad feeling about this…"

Naruto looked surprised. "But there's no way that I can get there in time! I'll have to-!"

Minato suddenly whipped out his arm, and a long piece of white cloth sped out of his sleeve, wrapping itself around Naruto.

Naruto seemed surprised by this. "I-Is this…?"

Minato nodded. "It's Sentan Hakuja. Now, once you get there, don't try and fight Aizen alone. If there are other captains there, then help them to fight Aizen, but don't try to be a hero and fight him yourself, understood? Your main priority is to stop Aizen from getting hold of Kuchiki Rukia."

Naruto gave his dad a big grin and a thumbs up as he began to disappear behind the view of the bindings. "Don't worry about me! I promise that I'll save Rukia!"

And with that, Naruto disappeared in a blinding flash of white light.

…

Minato sighed and turned back around, looking down at the ground. He closed his eyes and drew a bag of black powder from his uniform.

After drawing a series of symbols on his arms, hand, and the ground, he stretched out his hands and took a deep breath as a square made of a glowing blue reiatsu appeared in front of him. "Black and white net. Twenty-two bridges, sixty-six crowns and belts. Footprints, distant thunder, sharp peak, engulfing land, hidden in the night, sea of clouds, blue line. Form a circle and fly though the heavens…"

Minato narrowed his eyes as a bright spider web of blue reiatsu spread out in front of him. "Bakudo #77: Tenteikūra!"

...

All throughout Seireitei, twenty-seven heads snapped up as they felt a presence enter their minds.

...

"Attention all captains, vice-captains, and ryokas," announced Minato. "This is jūsanbantai-fukutaichou, Namikaze Minato. Please pay attention and listen closely, as what I am about to tell you is of the most urgent matter…"

[Sokyoku Hill, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Ichigo slammed the point of sword into the ground and used it as support, his head bent as blood splattered from his shoulders and chest. Byakuya, who was not ten feet away from him, looked at his hands as he took a few steps forward, struggling not to black out. He looked at his bloodied hand as his vision began to dim, and he clenched it tightly. "You wanted to know… why I would kill Rukia."

Ichigo's head shot up at the sound of Byakuya's voice, and he struggled to turn around and face him. "Those who have sinned must be judged," stated Byakuya. "Once the sentence is decided, it must be enforced… because it's the law."

"So because it's the law, you'd even kill your own sister?" asked Ichigo.

"Affection of blood relatives… how absurd."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. "What?"

Byakuya sighed and closed his eyes. "Compared to the law, there is no value in any emotion. I never possessed such absurd emotions in the first place. The Kuchiki Family is one of the Great Four Noble Houses… We must be an example to all Shinigamis. If we do not obey the law, then who will?"

Ichigo stared at him for a second before responding. "Sorry, but I don't get it at all. If I… If I were in your position, I think that I'd still have fought against the law!"

Byakuya's eyes widened at this. _I see… So I was never his enemy to begin with…From the start, he was fighting against the laws of Soul Society itself._

"Kurosaki Ichigo," said Byakuya out loud. "My sword has been shattered by your unwavering determination. I will no longer pursue Rukia. This duel… is your victory."

And with that, he disappeared, leaving only a wisp of smoke behind in his place.

Ichigo grimaced as he lifted his head, roaring as loudly as possible towards the sky. _I-, I did it…_ he said to himself as he collapsed on the ground. _I won…_

...

"Kurosaki..."

Ichigo's eyes snapped open at the sound of the voice. "I-Ishida…?" He looked up to see the familiar face staring down at him. "It's you…"

Ishida gave him a sad smile as he helped Ichigo up into a sitting position. "Come on, Kurosaki…" he said as he placed his hand on Ichigo's back. "Let's get you out of here and over to where Inoue-san and the others are at. They're waiting for you."

Ichigo closed his eyes and smiled, finally at peace. "Inoue and the others, huh…?

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Just to clear some questions up:**

**- Naruto is **_**going**_** to lose his memories in another arc. That's why I put "robbed" in the summary. Sorry about any confusions.**

**- If you have any questions, just leave them in reviews and I'll answer you through PM, but the chances are that my answer will be, "I'll explain it later on in the story."**

**Translations:**

**- Shiro Kaze Shuriken: White Wind Shuriken.**

**- Raijin: Thunder God.**

**Follow, favorite and review!**


	4. The Ryoka Invasion Arc: Conclusion

**Important Message:** I usually never do OST's just because I feel like it's unnecessary, but I _will_ be including them in my story in some rare cases where I feel like it's just absolutely necessary. I always thought OST's were stupid, but **I strongly encourage you guys** to actually listen to the OST while reading that specific part, and I promise you guys that it'll make the story x100 times better.

Honestly, the OST scene for this chapter is probably one of the best fight scenes, (or just scenes), that I've ever written.

**Random Message:** Also, I never noticed this, but the story seems so much cooler when you read it with the background being black and the text being white (the white and black circle on the top of the bar above the chapter). I just thought that I'd share it as it seemed interesting.

Also, there's an **important message** at the end, so please read it.

**The Ryoka Invasion Arc: Conclusion**

_Those who stray from the path of justice have no courage, but under the wing of a strong leader, cowardice cannot survive._

_- Namikaze Minato_

[Sokyoku Hill, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Aizen and Gin looked around the area as they appeared at Sokyoku Hill in a flash of blinding light. "Hmmm…" Aizen blinked as he gazed around the terrain. "Kaname should be here at any moment."

And on cue, a flash of white light appeared in front of them, the light dispersing to reveal Tosen, Renji, and Rukia in its place. Renji looked around, and his eyes widened as they fell upon Aizen and Gin. "A-Aizen-taichou…? And Ichimaru-taichou!" he exclaimed. "What's going on here…?" He unconsciously tightened his grip on Rukia as he felt a foreboding tension in the air. _What's going on here...?_

"Ah… If it isn't Abarai-kun," said Aizen as he slowly walked towards them.

Renji narrowed his eyes, suddenly remembering Minato's message that had been relayed to all of the captains and vice-captains in Seireitei. "So it's true after all… You're alive, and you betrayed us…!" he cried out in a mix of confusion and desperation. "Aizen-taichou, please tell me that it isn't true! Did you and Ichimaru-taichou really betray Soul Society?!"

Aizen smiled as he continued walking towards him. "Step away from Kuchiki Rukia," he said calmly, ignoring Renji's question.

Renji clenched his teeth as he glared at Aizen. "I'm afraid that I can't, Aizen-taichou!"

...

Aizen narrowed his eyes slightly. "What?"

Rukia's eyes widened as she felt Renji's grip on her tighten. "R-Renji…" she whispered.

"Shut your mouth, Rukia!" growled Renji as he continued to glare at Aizen. He hugged Rukia closer, unwilling to let go of his best friend. Rukia felt his arms beginning to tremble as Renji tightened his hold on her. "I'm not letting you go, Rukia!" He bowed his head as he held back the tears in his eyes that threatened to spill. "Not now..." he whispered, his voice full of agony. "Not again...!"

Rukia bit her lip, forcing herself to remain calm despite the urge to sob into her best friend's arms. _Renji..._

Aizen closed his eyes and sighed. "Very well," he said in a mock sad voice. He slowly drew his sword from its sheathe as he continued to advance towards Renji. "I will take your feelings into consideration, Abarai-kun. If you cannot bear to be separated from the girl, then don't let her go. Instead, leave your arms _and_ the girl, and then step away."

Renji narrowed his eyes as he braced himself. "Fat chance, you son of a bitch!" he spat. _This is it... Get yourself together, Renji! Aizen-taichou can attack any moment, so..._

The former 5th Division's captain's simply blinked as he stopped around two feet in front of Renji and Rukia, his blade slightly raised below his waistline.

…

_Shit!_ swore Renji mentally as he jumped back, narrowly avoiding Aizen's attack. Rukia's eyes widened in horror as a splatter of blood sprayed the ground. "R-Renji…" she whispered as she looked up at him. "Why…?!"

Renji grimaced as he gripped his left arm, which had a large gash on it. _Dammit, that was close… Aizen-taichou's speed is almost unreal…! I was barely able to dodge that attack, and I definitely won't be able to dodge the-._

"You've learned to dodge quite well, haven't you, Abarai-kun?" commented Aizen as he smiled at him. "That makes me so happy, but now…" Renji's eyes widened as Aizen suddenly seemed to teleport to him from where he was standing. _His speed increased! _thought Renji as he got ready to jump back.

"Too slow!" said Aizen as he swung his blade at him.

Renji shut his eyes tightly as he used himself as a shield in order to protect Rukia from the attack, waiting for the final blow. When the attack didn't come, Renji, confused, opened his eyes and looked up to see a figure standing in front of him, having blocked Aizen's attack with her own Zanpakuto. Her red hair flowed behind her like a flowing silk scarf as she stood over him with an almost graceful stance.

Aizen looked "surprised" at the appearance of this figure. _Well, if it isn't..._

… "Jūsanbantai-sanseki, Uzumaki Kushina," said Aizen in a composed tone despite the constant hindrances in his plan. "How did you manage to find us…?"

Kushina swung her blade at Aizen, knocking his own blade aside and thrusting at him, forcing him to leap back. "I never failed to sense someone's reiatsu," she replied with a calm look on her face. "I rushed here as soon as possible once I sensed a large group of reiatsu about to materialize here." She held her sword loosely by her side, but her body was tense, ready to intercept Aizen from the slightest movement. "It shouldn't be much of a surprise to you, Aizen," she stated calmly, a hint of humor in her voice. "I highly doubt that you weren't able to sense my presence from afar. You _are_ a captain after all... or are you going to put on a fake smile on your face again and calmly state that I was overestimating you?"

"I see…" Aizen closed his eyes, smiling in amusement. "You're right, Uzumaki-sanseki... And now that you've found us, what do you plan on doing?" He stretched his arms out as if he was inviting her to attack him. "Will you defeat all three of us, or will you try to hold us off until your reinforcements arrive?" He glanced at Rukia for a second before turning his gaze back to Kushina. "No matter what you try, you won't even be able to buy Abarai-kun and Kuchiki Rukia enough time to escape. All options that you have considered and will consider is absolutely futile. There is no way that you can win. All you can do is hand over Kuchiki Rukia and step back."

Kushina narrowed her eyes as she raised her blade, hilt up. "Having confidence in your abilities is one thing, but should you really be going off and acting all tough without even knowing what your enemy is capable of? That's arrogant even for you, Aizen! I'm going to trap you and your two subordinates here until the other captains arrive to lock you three up!"

Aizen seemed amused by this. "Oh…?"

"I'll wipe that smug look off of your face, Aizen," said Kushina determinedly. "I know that I'm not nearly strong enough to take on three captains all by myself, but I can still trap you three!" Aizen watched as Kushina stabbed down with her sword, half of the length of the blade sinking into the ground below. She slammed her hand together as she emitted a wave of fiery red reiatsu that enveloped her.

"Bind, Baindinguchēn!"

Aizen and his two subordinates looked down as they felt the ground below them rumble. "What's going on…?" asked Tosen rhetorically. "What is this...?"

All three of their eyes widened in shock as ten glowing blue-grey chains suddenly shot out of the ground, twisting and wrapping themselves around Aizen and the other two. Aizen narrowed his eyes and struggled against the chains that had bound him, but he was barely able to budge his arms. "This is…" He yanked his arm, but he was unable to break free of the chains. "Impressive… Someone with my level of reiryoku should be able to break free of any Bakudo-type Shikai easily, and yet…"

Kushina gave Aizen a dangerous smile. "I was born with an unusually powerful supply of chakra back when I was alive," she explained. "It seems that after my death, that supply of chakra was converted into an unusually powerful supply of reiryoku. My powerful reiatsu automatically strengthens my Shikai's ability by over twentyfold; otherwise, someone of your level would be able to break out of these chains with almost no effort at all."

"I see…" Aizen suddenly chuckled unexpectedly as he gripped the hilt of his Zanpakuto tightly. "It seems that I made a mistake not releasing my Kyoka Suigetsu earlier… It seems that I underestimated you..."

Kushina nodded curtly, acknowledging Aizen's statement. "I know… I was counting on the fact that you hadn't, which is the only reason why this worked."

Gin tugged against the chains and smiled with a carefree look on his face. "My bad, _Aizen-taichou_. It seems that she wen' an' bound my Zanpakuto as well."

"No, it's fine…" said Aizen with an almost blank look on his face. "It's only a matter of time now."

Kushina narrowed her eyes when she heard this. "'It's only a matter of time…?' Don't underestimate me, Aizen!" She quickly stretched her arms out in front of her, chanting the incantation for a Kido spell. "Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle!"

Aizen remained motionless as a massive orb of yellow lightning appeared on the palm of Kushina's hand, smiling as if he was welcoming her attack.

"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!" yelled Kushina.

Aizen narrowed his eyes as a giant stream of lightning shot out from the orb of lightning; to Kushina's surprise, however, Aizen's smile grew even wider. "How disappointing, Uzumaki-sanseki."

Kushina's eyes widened as giant transparent rectangular wall appeared in front of Aizen, taking the hit for Aizen and his lackeys. The stream of lightning hit the wall harmlessly as if it was just a child's game.

"Did you really think that I would just rush into a battle with the entire Gotei 13 without any precautions?" asked Aizen amusedly. "That's careless even for you, Uzumaki-sanseki."

Kushina grimaced as she thought of what to do. "I have tons of other spells to use on you, Aizen!" she said. "Don't think that you're off of the hook just yet!"

Aizen shook his head at this. "Did you not just hear what I said?"

Kushina's eyes widened in shock. _Oh crap!_ She quickly jumped backwards as Aizen flicked his index finger in her direction. "Hadō #73: Sōren Sōkatsui!" Aizen called out. Kushina was barely able to dodge the stream of blue reiatsu that sped towards her, but the Kido spell managed to graze her arm, which caused a slight burn mark along the bottom of her arm.

Tosen, who had been watching the both of them while remaining motionless, had managed to wrap his index and middle finger around the hilt of his Zanpakuto. "Cry, Suzumushi."

Kushina's head snapped towards Tosen's direction as she heard a high-pitched tone ripple through the air. "Oh no!" she exclaimed as the chains fell from Tosen's body.

"You forgot about my Suzumushi's abilities," stated Tosen as he freed Aizen and Gin from their bindings as well. "Or rather, you didn't know about them, and that small mistake has cost you this entire battle. If you had known better, then you would have bound my hands tighter so that I couldn't have even lifted a finger."

Kushina swore silently in her head, stretching out her arms and twisting them in different patterns. Aizen and his two men were taken by surprise and quickly jumped into the air, using their Zanpakutos to fend off the chains. Aizen seemed impressed by this, even if it was only slightly. "So you can manipulate these chains in a similar manner to that of Kuchiki-taichou's Senbonzakura," he observed. "What a troublesome ability."

"That's right," said Kushina with a grin. "If I control the chains with my hands, then the speed is doubled, just like Kuchiki-taichou's Senbonzakura Kageyoshi!"

The chains, which had a sharp spear-like edge at the end of them, were troublesome to fend off; Tosen and Gin even received a few minor cuts because they were taken by surprise, and therefore unable to fend off Kushina's attacks properly.

Aizen landed on the ground and pointed his blade at Kushina. "Shatter, Kyoka Suigetsu!" he called out.

Kushina's eyes widened. "Oh cr-!"

Aizen suddenly appeared behind Kushina, cutting her down. "My Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis is flawless… Uzumaki-sanseki… If you had just been a little more careful, then you might have succeeded in stopping us…"

Tosen suddenly flash stepped over to Aizen's side. "Allow me to finish her off, Aizen-sama," he said, his blade slightly raised.

Aizen blinked and turned away from the fallen redhead. "Do as you wish, Kaname."

"Farewell, sanseki," said Tosen as he raised his sword high into the air. As he swung down with his blade, his eyes slightly widened as a yellow blur appeared in front of him, blocking his attack with his sword.

Aizen turned his head to face the figure that had just appeared. "Namikaze-fukutaichou…"

When Minato looked up at Aizen, his eyes contained a look of anger and determination so pure that even Aizen was taken by mild surprise. "Aizen…" whispered Minato with a hint of rage in his voice. "I'm tired of this little game of yours… It ends now!"

Aizen smiled amusedly as he leapt back, landing besides Gin and Tosen. "How arrogant of you, Namikaze-fukutaichou."

Kaname's dead eyes narrowed as he readied himself for another attack. "Forgive me, Aizen-sama. This time, I will make sure that I dispose of this-."

"TOSEN!"

* * *

OST: Fade to Black

Link: www youtube com watch?v=Wsbv7cjzLks (remember to put the periods and slashes in between the spaces).

* * *

Aizen and the others stopped talking and turned their heads to see a yellow-haired figure speeding across the terrain with such ferocity that his sandals actually dug _into_ the ground, leaving a trail of rubble and sparks in his wake.

"TOSEN!" roared the figure again.

THUD! Tosen's eyes widened in shock as the yellow-haired figure crashed into him, sending both of them flying across the terrain. "U-Uzumaki!" exclaimed Tosen in shock. His eyes widened even more as he felt an intense and sinister reiatsu emitting from his vice-captain. _T-This is…!_

Naruto's eyes widened as his deep blue eyes slowly turned into a pair of glowing orange-red eyes, his pupils shrinking and lengthening out to become slits that resembled a fox's eyes.

Tosen skillfully evaded and blocked all of his vice-captain's punches, but Naruto's strength had been drastically improved by Kurama's influence, so Tosen was quickly overwhelmed by Naruto's sheer brute strength. Tosen flicked the flat of the blade of Suzumushi in an attempt to overload Naruto's hearing, but the massive reiatsu that was enveloping Naruto prevented this. Tosen seemed shocked by this, but he quickly shook this off and attempted to cleave his vice-captain in half by swinging his sword at him.

Naruto saw this coming and stopped Tosen's blade with one hand, ignoring the blade cutting into his hand and yanking the blade out of his captain's hand. He slammed his elbow into Tosen's left arm, rendering it useless.

Tosen tried to block Naruto's punches, but the enraged vice-captain just grabbed his remaining arm and snapped it in half with just one hand, causing Tosen to cry out in pain. "You're not getting out of this yet!" roared Naruto as he delivered a powerful punch to Tosen's stomach.

"DON'T! TOUCH! MY! MOTHER!" screamed Naruto, pummeling Tosen's face with his bare fists between each word.

Tosen twisted around and escaped from Naruto's grip, trying to regain his footing. Before he could react, however, Naruto slammed his fist into Tosen's face and grabbed his Zanpakuto, yanking it out of its sheathe and stabbing his captain's right leg with it.

Tosen struggled not to lose consciousness as the back of his head slammed into the ground repeatedly. _T-This power… Impossible…_

Naruto grabbed his captain by the neck and crouched down, propelling himself into the air with his legs. He gripped Tosen's neck with both hands and swung him over his head, throwing him down at the ground a second later with such strength that when Tosen hit the ground, a ripple of shockwaves traveled throughout the terrain.

THUD! Tosen hit the ground with such devastating force that it basically exploded, causing large chunks of rock and rubble to fly everywhere.

Naruto appeared on the ground beside his captain and quickly grabbed him, not giving him a chance to react. "I'LL fucking KILL YOU!" he screamed as he held Tosen up by the neck, pummeling his face with his fist until Tosen's face was literally dripping with blood. "NEVER! TOUCH! MY! MOTHER! EVER! AGAIN!"

Naruto then dropped to the ground and slammed his feet into Tosen's stomach, kicking him up into the air. Tosen let out an "oomph" as he spat out a large amount of blood. The 9th Division vice-captain instantly jumped into the air and appeared above his captain, his wide eyes filled with hatred and rage. "AHHH!" he screamed, flipping over in mid-air and slamming his foot into Tosen's stomach.

THUD! Tosen hit the ground once more, the sheer force of the impact cracking multiple bones all over his body as well as his skull.

_Ugh…_ Tosen struggled to lift his head, but his head dropped and slammed on the ground. _I-, I can't move… my body… That Naruto… When did he become this strong…?_

He gasped for air as he faced the sky, unable to move a single finger because of the intense beating that he had just taken. _T-This power… It's…_

Naruto landed beside Tosen and took sharp and deep breaths, struggling not to let his hatred and rage overwhelm him. His eyes slowly regained their normal color, and his face gradually regained their natural "human" look.

Naruto blinked as he looked down at his defeated captain, an unreadable expression on his face.

* * *

End of OST

* * *

_Back at Sokyoku Hill…_

Minato turned his eyes from Naruto and Tosen to Aizen as he raised his kunai mid-way. "Tosen's a goner, Aizen," he said slowly. "Now there's just you and Gin left…"

Aizen chuckled at this, slightly lifting his sword into the air. "Just me and Gin…? You seem quite confident in your abilities, Namikaze-fukutaichou."

Minato grinned as he twirled his kunai on the tip of his finger. "I know my limits, Aizen… Unlike you, that is."

…

"Is that right…?" Aizen maintained his calm gaze as he raised his sword, pointing the blade at Minato's heart. "Fear not, Namikaze-fukutaichou. I will show you the error of your ways, and then you will realize how foolish your logic was… after I crush it with my own sword."

Minato narrowed his eyes as he glared at Aizen from his spot next to Kushina. "Aizen, you…"

[Sokyoku Hill, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Ichigo skidded to a halt as he arrived at the scene, Ishida and the others arriving just a few moments later. _This is…_ Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he saw Minato and Aizen facing each other, not twenty feet apart. _What's going on here…? Is there a fight going on, or did it already happen…?_

Ishida gulped as he noticed the tension in the air. _The tension… I feel like I'm being suffocated by an overwhelming force… It's like I'm trapped under pressurized water; I can't breathe or move under all of this reiatsu… Is this what it feels like when two captain-leveled people are about to fight…?_

"Minato…"

Minato looked down to see Kushina grabbing his leg, a sick and tired look in her eyes. _She's in critical condition… That Aizen… She's only last three hours at most at this point…_

"Please… be careful," whispered Kushina.

Minato gave her a sad smile as he knelt down and placed his hand against her cheek. "I will," he said gently. "Just stay still, Kushina. The 4th Division should be here soon."

Aizen blinked as he watched the two through blank eyes. "Namikaze-fukutaichou…"

Getting up, Minato shifted his feet as he got into position, stretching out his arm and holding his kunai out in front of him. "I have nothing more to say to you, Aizen…"

… "Ban Kai."

THUD! A wave of blinding white light flashed throughout the area like a ripple effect, momentarily blinding everyone within range. Ichigo grimaced as a current of electricity filled the air, covering his ears in an attempt to block the sound out from his head. _What is this…?_

Once the light dissipated, Minato was shown holding two kunais in his hands. They were exactly the same as his Shikai, but this time, there was a constant flow of yellow-white lightning running through the blades. Minato stared at Aizen, a confident look in his eyes. "Hiraishin Keisan…"

Ichigo blinked, surprised. "Wait a second… _That's_ a Bankai…? Like Byakuya's Bankai…? Why is it so freaking small? It's even smaller than mine!"

…

"I see…" said Aizen as he stared at Minato's Bankai. "So this is your Bankai, Namikaze-fukutaichou… I must say that I'm surprised."

Minato blinked as he gazed coolly at Aizen. "About what?"

"I expected your Bankai to be much… _imposing_," said Aizen, pointing at one of the kunais with his sword. "It looks exactly like your Shikai… I wonder if-." Aizen suddenly tilted his head to the side, narrowly avoiding a kunai as it sped past his head. "I wasn't finished talking, Namikaze-fukutaichou," he said calmly. "How unlike you."

"I don't want to hear that from you, Aizen," said Minato, slowly releasing his grip on his remaining kunai.

As the kunai fell through the air, Aizen blinked, and when he opened his eyes, a look of disbelief spread across his face.

…

"What?!" Aizen's eyes widened in shock as he stared at Minato. _What's going on here…?_

Minato, who had been standing still, suddenly seemed to flicker and was seen holding both of his kunais in his hands, standing there as calmly as ever.

Aizen narrowed his eyes. "Namikaze Minato…"

Minato gave Aizen a dangerous smile. "It must be hard to comprehend what just happened, right, Aizen? How is it that I have both my kunais in my hands when I had just thrown one at you while having dropped the other…? Let's try this again." Spinning his kunais on the tip of his fingers, Minato threw both of them at Aizen in quick succession, the lightning-enhanced kunais flying through the air.

Aizen blocked both kunais with ease, but he was taken by surprise when Minato suddenly appeared next to him at the exact moment that his blade touched the surface of the kunai.

Minato quickly grabbed the kunais and slashed twice at Aizen who ducked, narrowly avoiding the kunais as they passed over his head. _Wait…_ thought Minato in mid-air. _Something's wrong… This feeling… Is this… Kyoka Suigetsu…?! So he must have released his Zanpakuto while he was fighting Kushina! If so, then… _Minato quickly crouched down and flipped over on one hand, his other hand unnoticeably brushing against the end Aizen's waraji.

Minato then glanced behind his back out of the corner of his eyes and threw one of his kunais around twenty feet away from where he was at. _My reiatsu signature in my Hiraishin Keisan kunais can only be sensed by me, so there's no way that Aizen could create a copy of that, as he can't sense its reiatsu signature… I hope that this works!_

"You cannot compete with my Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis," said Aizen as he raised his blade at Minato. "It's impossible to counter it…"

… "Like this," said a voice behind him.

Minato spun around to see Aizen standing behind him, the "fake" him shattering into thousands of pieces like he was made of glass. "Farewell, Namikaze-fukutaichou," said Aizen as he swung his blade at him.

Minato narrowed his eyes and his lips spread into a grin as he suddenly flickered over to the kunai that he had thrown earlier, Aizen's blade passing through the spot that he was just at by a millisecond.

Aizen's eyes widened at this. _He's fast! This-! _The former 5th Division captain suddenly leapt back as Minato flickered from his spot to Aizen's side, his kunai ripping through Aizen's haori along the area of the torso.

Aizen narrowed his eyes as he touched his ripped haori. _How is this possible…? He said that the seals incorporated on his kunais were the source of his teleportation method, but..._ He suddenly bowed his head, chuckling quietly to himself. "I see… So along with the seals on your kunais, your Bankai allows you to place a formula for a seal on whatever you want… You must have placed a formula on me somewhere… Otherwise, it would have been possible for you to have reached me so easily..."

Minato nodded in confirmation. "I call it my raijin-shiki." Minato silently swore to himself after that. _I didn't expect him to deduce my Bankai so easily… Dammit… I feel so much weaker in the spirit world because of the difference of strength between shinobis and Shinigamis! … Even __**with**__ my Bankai, I'm not sure if I can handle him on my own… Now that he's figured out my Bankai, this fight is going to be a whole lot harder…_

Aizen raised his Zanpakuto and pointed it at Minato. "It seems that I've underestimated you, Namikaze-fukutaichou." _But then again, he is now at a speed where I cannot fully keep up…_ said Aizen in his head. _It's time to end this and…_

Aizen glanced back at Gin, who was standing behind him. "Gin, make sure that Kuchiki Rukia stays put. Dispose of Abarai-kun if you wish."

"Got it, Aizen-taichou," replied Gin, turning to Renji, who was beside him with a blade pointed at this throat. Grabbing Rukia by the front of her robe, Gin yanked her out of Renji's grip, dropping her next to his side. "Cya, _Abarai-san_," he said, raising his blade for the kill.

"RENJI, RUN!" screamed Rukia.

… Gin blinked, unmoved by a metallic silver-white shuriken suddenly slamming into his blade, stopping his attack. "If it ain't Uzumaki-fukutaichou-san. What are ya doin' here?"

THUD! Gin, Renji, and Rukia all turned around to see Naruto landing hard on the ground ten feet away from them, carrying a defeated Tosen by his collar in his right hand. "Ichimaru Gin…" said Naruto slowly, dropping Tosen's body next to him. "It seems that I made it in time…"

"My my," said Gin, tilting his head to the side. "It seems like Tosen-san really got messed up, no? You're a lot stronger than I expected, Uzumaki-fukutaichou-san."

Aizen smiled amusedly as he saw Naruto standing next to Tosen's battered and bruised body. "Uzumaki-fukutaichou… It seems that you've roused my interest in you once again… I'm even more interested to study and learn about this strange power of yours…"

Naruto's hand suddenly shot up, catching his shuriken as it curved back and flew towards him. "Ichimaru… I'm going to stop you and Aizen!"

Gin's grin grew even wider at this. "Ya shouldn't speak like tha', or it might make ya look weak later on." He then turned to Aizen. "My bad, _Aizen-taichou_. It seems like I'm gonna hav' ta' deal wit' this lil' problem first."

"It's fine," replied Aizen, turning back to face Minato. "We still have some time left, so a little fight or two won't hinder us. I'll be done with this in a little bit."

"'I'll be done with this in a little bit?'" repeated Minato, his eyes narrowed into slits. "You've gotten good at telling jokes, Aizen…"

"Let us finish this fight, Namikaze Minato," said Aizen. "Come with me at full power, and I will crush your feeble attempts one at a time…"

_Meanwhile…_

… "Are you ready?"

A figure with neck-length jet-black hair and onyx eyes straightened up as he picked his katana up off of the ground. "Of course."

The first figure who was next to him cracked his neck with his hands as he watched his companion stick his katana in his sash that was around his waist underneath his black robe. Although his face was hidden by the shadows, he was fairly tall male with fairly long black hair that fell a little past his neck, his hair spiked messily to the side.

He cast his eyes towards the window where Sokyoku Hill was visible from. "It seems that they've already started. Judging by the reiatsu, it seems that Aizen's fighting with jūsanbantai-fukutaichou, Namikaze Minato…"

The figure next to him blinked. "Namikaze Minato, huh…?"

"Yea… And it seems that he's used his Bankai…" said the first figure quietly. "Aizen must have really angered him for him to have used his Bankai…"

"It seems that way," answered the second figure. "Also, did you get the status reports on the locations of the other captains and vice-captains yet?"

"Yea," replied the first figure. "All of them are on their way to Sokyoku Hill as we speak. Anyways…"

The door slowly creaked open as the two figures stepped out into the light, breathing in the cool air before turning their gazes towards the location that Naruto and the others were located.

"… Let's go."

_Back at Sokyoku Hill…_

Aizen swiftly ducked as Minato's kunai passed overhead, slicing off a few strands of hair. Spinning around, Aizen slashed at the 13th Division's vice-captain, but his blade passed through air. _Che…!_ Aizen scoffed lightly in his head as he performed multiple back flips in order to avoid a swift onslaught of attacks from Minato using his two kunais. _His speed is starting to become a nuisance…_

"What's wrong, Aizen?" teased Minato as he teleported to Aizen's side. He tried to lock Aizen's neck with his legs, but Aizen skillfully grabbed his leg and stabbed upwards with his katana.

Minato grimaced as he stabbed at Aizen's hand with his kunai, throwing his other kunai a couple feet away from him. Once Aizen released his grip on him to avoid the kunai, Minato quickly transported to his other kunai, narrowly avoiding Aizen's blade; however, Aizen still managed to give the vice-captain a shallow cut.

Minato winced as he grabbed his leg. _Dammit, he got me… Even though it's a shallow wound, it'll start hindering my speed in those critical moments… I'm guessing that I have a two or three minutes at best… I have to finish this fight by then!_

Ichigo stared at Minato, a shocked look on his face. _W-What is… What is he…_

"HE'S RIGHT BEHIND YOU!" he roared.

"What?!" Minato's eyes widened as he spun around to face… Aizen. _I-Impossible!_

Aizen's eyes narrowed into slits as he grinned maliciously, cutting down the vice-captain. "Once you grabbed both kunais, it was quite obvious that you would cast one aside sooner or later in order to avoid my blade." Minato swore silently as he leapt back, grabbing his other kunai in the process. "What do you mean by that?! Tell me!" he demanded, teleporting to Aizen's side.

"Let me ask you this, Namikaze-fukutaichou," said Aizen as he blocked Minato's attack. "How was it that you were able to even come _close_ to using a leg lock on me?"

Minato's eyes widened at this; Aizen grinned as he pushed Minato back with a swing of his sword. "It seems that you realized it," he stated. "That is correct- I _let_ you come close enough to where you could attack me directly. I used that moment and grabbed your legs, forcing you to discard one of your kunais so that you would have to teleport to it in order to dodge my attack."

Minato clenched his teeth in frustration. _What…?! This Aizen… So he had already planned this out a while ago…_

"You are already under my Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis- it was a simple matter to hide myself in front of your kunai," Aizen continued. "And since you assumed that I was really _there_- Aizen pointed to the spot where he and Minato were just at moments ago- you unconsciously set yourself to automatically teleport to you kunai, as teleporting to the fake 'me' would have been useless."

Minato grabbed at his chest, noticing his breathing turning heavier. _Dammit… Aizen's blade cut deeper than expected… At this rate, I-. _Both Minato and Aizen's eyes widened in shock as two blurs suddenly appeared behind Aizen and Gin. Aizen blinked as he looked down, a blade pressing against his throat. Gin did the same, his smile unwavering.

Aizen grinned as he glanced behind him out of the corner of his eyes. "Well, if it isn't…"

"... Nibantai-fukutaichou…" said Gin slowly as he glanced behind him.

The figure was a young male with onyx eyes and neck-length jet-black hair with the back of it being pulled into a low ponytail with a red elastic. He also had unusual pronounced tear-troughs under his eyes.

"… Uchiha… Itachi…"

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he saw him. "What are you doing here, Itachi…? I thought that you were off on some assignment."

"I finished early," replied Itachi plainly, an unreadable look in his eyes.

"Is that right?" asked Minato curiously. "So you two received the message as well? I decided to try and contact you anyways, but I wasn't sure if you had gotten it."

"Yes," answered Itachi. "We would have come sooner, but I had just arrived at Seireitei."

… "So you two have finally come out," said Aizen quietly from his spot. "The two most secretive and unseen Shinigamis in the Gotei 13… Uchiha Itachi, and…" Aizen's grin grew wider as the figure behind him grabbed his Zanpakuto by the blade, preventing him from using it.

"… Uchiha Pain."

Pain blinked, his midnight-blue eyes blank. "Don't move, Aizen. The second I feel you even twitch, I'll cut off your head."

Aizen and the others suddenly looked around as they heard multiple figures scattering throughout the area. "It seems that the rest of the reinforcements have arrived," stated Aizen in amusement. "Isn't this quite the show?"

Ichigo, who had been quietly standing by the sidelines, looked around in amazement. "L-Look at all these people!"

Yamamoto Genryusai, Chojiro, Soifon, Omaeda, Kira, Isane, Byakuya, Komamura, Iba, Kyoraku, Nanao, Hisagi, Ukitake, Kiyone, Sentaro, and Shihoin Yoruichi had all arrived on the battlefield, their Zanpakutos drawn.

"My bad, Aizen-taichou," apologized Gin. "Seems like I wen' an' got myself caught." As he raised his hand for an unknown reason, a surprised look spread across his face as Rangiku appeared behind him, grabbing his wrist.

"My apologies, Uchiha-fukutaichou," apologized Rangiku as she focused her eyes on Gin, the point of her Zanpakuto pressed against his back. "Please allow me to handle Ichimaru-taichou in your place!"

Itachi blinked, merely nodding in response. "Very well," he replied, withdrawing his blade and backing away.

"Isn't this quite the nostalgic sight?" said Aizen. "Shihoin Yoruichi… So you've finally shown yourself after over a hundred years of hiding."

Yoruichi pressed her blade against Aizen's legs as she glared at him. "Just give up, Aizen… Don't you get it? You're completely surrounded… It's over."

…

Aizen suddenly chuckled, surprising Yoruichi and everyone else. "What are you laughing at, Aizen?" asked Yoruichi, narrowing her eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry," apologized Aizen as he looked up at the sky. "I was just thinking to myself that it's almost time."

…

Yoruichi's eyes suddenly widened in shock as she realized what Aizen meant by that. _CRAP! _"EVERYONE GET BACK!" she yelled as she leaped away from Aizen.

Pain and Rangiku swiftly leapt back, narrowly avoiding three beams of yellow light that descended upon Aizen, Gin, and Tosen from the sky. Pain, however, had managed to lightly slice Aizen's neck with his katana before leaping away.

A giant line suddenly appeared in the sky, two skeletal white hands creeping out of it and slowly opening it up to reveal a giant black hole in the sky.

"I-Impossible!" whispered Omaeda in shock.

Soifon looked up at the hole in the sky as dozens of towering black figures with white skeletal-like masks crawled out from it, multiple rays of bright yellow light shooting out from the hole. "Menos Grande!" she exclaimed. _And there's so many of them…!_

"Gillians?!" said Omaeda as the Menos Grandes shot out from the hole, towering over the crowd below. "Just how many of them _are_ there?!"

"Wait!" exclaimed Hisagi from his spot besides Naruto. "There's still something behind them!"

The Shinigamis below looked on in amazement as a giant purple eye-like crescent appeared behind the Gillians. _W-What is that thing?!_ wondered Ichigo.

Meanwhile, Rangiku stared at Gin as the ground below him ripped apart, Gin floating up towards giant hole in the sky on a makeshift platform from the ground. _Gin…_

"I'm a lil' disappointed," said Gin as he floated up, lowering his arm. "Ya coulda kept holdin' on a lil' longer…" He turned his head to face Rangiku, a sincere apologetic look on his face. "So long, Rangiku," he said as he gave her a sad smile. "I'm sorry."

…

Iba grimaced as he watched Aizen and the other two former captains descend up into the sky. "You think you're getting away, dammit?!" he exclaimed as he rushed towards Aizen.

"Stop!" ordered Yamamoto.

Iba stopped and looked back at him, surprised. "Soutaichou…"

"That light is called Negación," explained Yamamoto. "Menos use it when helping their own. It was over once they were wrapped in that light; inside the light is a completely isolated, unaffectable world… Anyone who has ever fought with a Menos knows that the moment that light came down we could no longer even touch Aizen…"

"At least Aizen didn't get his hands on the Hogyoku," said Minato as he stared up at Aizen. "We've put a halt to his plans for now…"

Aizen chuckled as he reached into his robe, pulling out a small translucent marble-like sphere; Minato stared at the object with a look of disbelief on his face. "Namikaze-fukutaichou… Before you figured out how to temporarily counter my Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis, who do you think you were really fighting?" asked Aizen with a hint of amusement in his voice.

Minato's eyes widened in shock as he cast his eyes onto Gin, and his eyes widened even further as his eyes fell upon the Gin's ripped haori. _I-Impossible…! His haori is ripped along the torso, which is exactly where I cut Aizen! _Minato's eyes narrowed into slits as he glared at the former captain. "Aizen, you…"

"Precisely," said Aizen. "While you were busy fighting Gin, I had removed the Hogyoku from inside of Kuchiki Rukia."

"But what about Naruto and the ryokas?" exclaimed Minato. "They haven't seen your-!"

"They haven't seen my Kyoka Suigetsu yet?" said Aizen, finishing Minato's sentence for him. "With Complete Hypnosis, it was a simple matter to alter their motions and words to what I wanted them to be. I simply allowed the ryoka-boy to warn you about where I was hiding."

Ukitake stepped forward from his spot, his eyes slightly narrowed as he stared up at Aizen. "You've even joined hands with the Menos? For what reason?"

"To seek new heights," answered Aizen, the look of amusement gone from his face.

Ukitake grimaced, the expression on his face becoming even more serious. "Have you fallen to the ground, Aizen?"

"You arrogance is excessive, Ukitake," answered Aizen as he continued to descend into the sky. "No one was standing in Heaven to begin with… Not you, not me, not even god… However, that unbearable vacancy in the throne of Heaven will end…" Aizen took off his glasses as he spoke, slicking his hair back with his hand as his glasses crumbled into dust. "From now on, I will stand in Heaven!" he stated, looking down at the crowd below.

"Farewell, Shinigamis… Farewell, Uzumaki Naruto… I congratulate you on having defeated Kaname without so much as a scratch on you. No wonder why you were declared the strongest shinobi of your old… _home_."

Naruto blinked as he looked up at Aizen. _Huh…? W-What is this…? Why did he say 'home' like that…? Wait a second… _He shook his head as he shut his eyes tight. _Kakashi-sensei… Sakura-chan… Sasuke… Tsunade-baja…_

Aizen's eyes narrowed as he stared down at the suddenly confused vice-captain. "It seems that it's starting to work."

_What…? What's starting to work…?_ wondered Naruto as he glared at Aizen. "What are you talking about, Aizen?"

Aizen blinked and ignored Naruto as he glanced over at Ichigo, who was staring up at him through narrowed eyes. "Also, farewell, ryoka boy…" he said as he finally reached the hole in the sky, looking back at Ichigo as he descended into the darkness. "For a human, you were truly interesting…"

Naruto narrowed his eyes as the hole closed up, swallowing Gin, Tosen, and the Menos Grandes up along with Aizen. _Aizen, you bastard…_

…

"I can't believe it," whispered Kira as he slumped on the ground, exhausted by the day's events. "Three captains turned out to be traitors… Ichimaru-taichou, why…?"

Ichigo clenched his teeth in frustration as he glared at the ground. _I-… I was powerless against him- even __**with**__ my Bankai, I couldn't do anything…!_

… "Are you alright, Ichigo?"

Ichigo looked up, startled by the sudden interruption. He turned around to see Naruto standing behind him, sheathing his sword.

"W-Who is that?" asked Orihime, leaning over to Ishida. Naruto overheard this and turned to face Orihime, giving her a warm smile. "Hi there! I'm the kyubantai-fukutaichou, Uzumaki Naruto."

"Oooh!" Orihime looked surprised. "A vice-captain?"

_This guy's reiatsu…_ Ishida narrowed his eyes as he stared at Naruto. _He has a warm and friendly atmosphere around him, but I can also sense something dark and sinister beneath all of that… Just what is he…?_

"What are you doing here, Naruto?" asked Ichigo in a depressing tone.

Naruto crossed his arms, sighing in exasperation. "You shouldn't look so down you know… You managed to defeat one of the top captains in the Gotei 13- be proud of it."

"Yea, I guess so…" Ichigo sighed as he stared at his hands. "It's just that… I don't know…"

Naruto started to shake, his face turning bright red in comical anger and frustration. "OY, YOU BAKA!" he raged, slapping Ichigo upside the head.

"OWWW!" yelled Ichigo. "OY OY OY! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!"

"IT'S CAUSE YOU'RE BEING DEPRESSING!" roared Naruto, scowling at him. "YOU'RE ALIVE, RIGHT?! SO BE HAPPY ABOUT IT AND STOP SULKING YOU EMO!"

Ichigo sighed and smiled sadly as he glanced over at Rukia who was kneeling down next to Byakuya, talking to him. "Yea, I guess so…" Naruto glanced at the spot that Rukia was at and blinked, turning back to face Ichigo. "Anyways, I came to ask you if you and your friends wanted to say in Seireitei for a while. The 1st Division is throwing a little "get well" party for everyone who's been injured. The soutaichou wanted me to ask you guys to come to the party as his special guests."

Orihime, Ishida, Chad, and even Ganju looked at each other in excitement. "Oooh!" exclaimed Orihime. "A _party_! Let's go, Kurosaki-kun!"

Ichigo gave Orihime a big smile, the depressing look on his face disappearing as he got into the mood. "Yea… Yea, let's go, everyone! That sounds like fun!" Ichigo turned to Naruto. "Thanks, Naruto. You're going there too, right?"

Naruto grinned as he slapped Ichigo across his back. "Of course, baka!"

Ichigo looked up at the sky, a calm and peaceful look spearing across his face as he closed his eyes, breathing in the cool and fresh air of the afternoon. _Yea… All of us together…_

… _Today is a good day after all._

* * *

**Well, that's the final chapter of "The Ryoka Invasion Arc." The next chapter will be featuring a completely new and different arc titled "The New Beginning Arc."**

**Translations:**

**- Baindinguchēn: Binding Chain.**

**- Hiraishin Hōfuku: Flying Thunder God's Retribution.**

**- Raijin-shiki: Thunder God Seal.**

**- Jūsanbantai: 13th Division.**

**Author's Note:**

**In case you guys were wondering, I got little OST scene from "Man of Steel." I thought that it would be fun to put small bits of movies and/or TV shows in my story, so enjoy those if you can find them, lol.**

**Also, I tried to make the fight scenes in this chapter as "real" and "awesome" as possible, but if any of you guys have any suggestions for future fights or see some things that you didn't really like, then feel free to point them out and leave a review. All criticisms are welcome, but please don't just leave like a flame or something.**


	5. The Shinigami Deserter Arc: New Arrivals

**Disclaimer:** Still the freaking same. Just putting it up here because it fills up some space.

**Author's Note:** Well, it was only up for a day, but I decided that the most popular choice was pretty clear. Here's the makeshift Land of Waves Arc, so enjoy!

Also, I couldn't find any quotes to match this chapter, so I'm just going to put up random quotes that I like.

**A Few Things to Note:**

- For Uchiha Pain's description, if you guys are wondering what he looks like, he slightly resembles the Deva Path (Yahiko), along with hair that's a cross between Namikaze Minato's and Uchiha Madara's. Also, he's a character that I made up in my other story, so don't worry if you're confused as to who he is. I'll explain his character later on in the story.

- The person who attacked Ichigo is an antagonist coming up in a later arc, so don't worry if you're confused about him having randomly attacked Ichigo.

**Chapter 5: The Shinigami Deserter Arc: New Arrivals**

_It's meaningless to just live, it's meaningless to just fight. I want to win!_

_- Kurosaki Ichigo_

**Recap of the Bount Invasion Arc**

_Three days after Aizen's betrayal, Ichigo, Inoue, Chad, and Ishida had all returned home, going back to their peaceful lives with their school, friends, and family. They had thought that their troubles were over, but a few weeks after their return from Soul Society, a new enemy called the "Bount" made their appearance in the World of the Living._

_After a brief skirmish with some Bounts, Ishida, along with another Bount called Yoshino, was captured by the enemy Bounts. Ichigo, along with Inoue and the others, broke into the Bount Mansion in order to rescue Ishida. Inside the mansion, Ichigo ran into Ichinose Maki, a former Shinigami who had deserted Soul Society in order to join the side of the Bounts. After a brief skirmish, Ichigo faces Jin Kariya, the leader of the Bounts, in a match._

_Ichigo is swiftly defeated by Kariya, being overpowered by his fearsome strength. Ichigo tries to stop Kariya and Ichinose as they begin to walk away, but as soon as Kariya turns around to confront the Shinigami-daikou once again, the Bount Mansion is attacked by Jinta and Ururu, forcing the Bounts to retreat._

_Ishida and Yoshino are rescued by the Mod-Souls and taken to Urahara's place. After a brief talk with Ishida, Yoshino bids him farewell and goes off to find Kariya. After finding him, she engages him in a fight which ultimately ends with her death._

_Not long after the skirmish at the Bount Mansion, Ichigo and the other Shinigamis broke into the Bount's secret lair, and Ichigo has a rematch with Kariya. After being overpowered by the Bount, Ichigo stabs himself chest with Zangetsu, having a short conversation with his Zanpakuto and regaining his right to use Bankai. With his Bankai activated, Ichigo is able to fight on even terms with Kariya, but before they could end their fight, Ishida appears and shoots an arrow into the gate that the Bounts had prepared in order to get into Soul Society._

_After Ichigo and the rest of the group makes their way into Soul Society, Kuchiki Byakuya manages to find and fight Kariya, Ichigo joining in on the fight after a while. Meanwhile, Kenpachi finds and fights with Ichinose Maki, ultimately defeating him._

_After a couple of days, Kariya manages to find and gain the power of the __Jōkaishō, a device made in Soul Society a long time ago which he claimed had the power to destroy Seireitei. Ichigo finds him, and they have their final fight with Rukia, Renji, and some of the other Shinigamis along with Ichigo's friends watching from the sidelines. The fight ultimately ends with Kariya blowing himself up, while Seireitei remained unharmed._

_Ichigo once again returned home, hoping that the long fights and troubles were finally past, but the Bount Invasion was just the beginning…_

[Karakura High School, Karakura Town, The World of the Living]

_Three weeks after the Bount Invasion…_

"See you later, Kurosaki-kun!"

Ichigo looked up from his desk, startled by the sudden voice. "O-Oh, Inoue!" he said. "Yea, see you later…" Ichigo looked down at his desk and sighed, completely exhausted from the events that had taken place the previous day. _Hirako Shinji… The Vizards… Just what the hell is going on here…?_

"_I-CHI-GOOO_!"

Ichigo looked up with a blank look on his face and stuck his hand out, catching a brown-haired figure by the face and slamming him into the ground. "Sup," said Ichigo in a bored tone as he got up from his seat.

"Ow ow ow ow ow!" whined the figure, tossing and turning on the ground as he cupped his face with his hands. "So cruel, Ichigooo!"

"Geez, Keigo," said a voice near the door. "I would have thought that you'd have learned not to do that by now…"

Ichigo turned around and raised his hand at the figure in greeting. "Hey Mizuiro," he said as he grabbed his bag from his chair, slinging it over his shoulder. "Well, I'm out. See ya guys later."

"Mmm! See you later, Ichigo!" Mizuiro called out, waving at him. He then looked down at his clumsy friend and sighed. "Well, let's get going, _Asano-san_! If you don't hurry, I'm going to leave you behind!"

"WHAT'S WITH THAT POLITE SPEECH AGAIN?!" screamed Keigo comically as he jumped up onto his feet. "YOU STARTED IT JUST YESTERDAY, AND I THOUGHT TO MYSELF, 'OH, MAYBE MIZUIRO IS JUST KIDDING AROUND WITH ME,' BUT YOU'RE DOING IT AGAIN TODAY AND I-!"

"I'm really going, _Asano-san_," teased Mizuiro as he walked out the door. "You better hurry up if you don't wanna get left behind!"

"THERE YOU GO AGAIN!" screamed Keigo, jumping up and down in the air. "IS THIS GOING TO BE A REGULAR THING WITH YOU?!"

…

The exhausted orange-haired teen sighed as he walked down the hallway, Keigo's screaming becoming more and more distant with each step that he took. _Wait…_ thought Ichigo as he continued walking. _Why am I being so depressing all of the time…? Geez, I should probably lighten up some more…_

"Hey, see you later, Ichigo!"

Ichigo lifted his head to see his friend Tatsuki in the distance, waving at him. "Yea, see you tomorrow, Tatsuki!" he called out, waving back at her. _Yea…! I should lighten up some more! I could care less about that stupid Hirako and his stupid group!_ As he arrived at the door, he placed his hand on the doorknob, taking a deep breath and turning it, forcing a smile on his face as he stepped into the daylight. _Yea, it's a good day!_

...

As he walked home, Ichigo found himself growing tense and rigid as he walked through the neighborhood. _What's this feeling that I'm getting…?_ he wondered. _It's only the middle of the day, but there's almost no one out..._ Looking up at the sky, he narrowed his eyes as he noticed the once bright sky beginning to slightly darken, the sun disappearing behind a blanket of slightly grey clouds.

... "Kurosaki Ichigo."

_What?!_ Ichigo quickly spun, his eyes widening as he saw a figure standing behind him, a sword in his hand. _W-Who is this guy…?!_

The figure was a fairly tall male who had a youthful face that looked around twenty-five or so. He had long black overgrown hair with his bangs covering one of his wide, deep grey eyes. He wore a fairly well-fitting ankle-length white cloak with a chin-high collar that covered his mouth along with a pair of white gloves that had black striped designs on it. His shoes were a pair of black tabis along with white zōris, and Ichigo could tell right away that this man was extremely dangerous.

"W-Who are you?!" asked Ichigo as he slowly reached for his combat pass.

The figure remained silent as he stood still for a brief moment, his sword suddenly flashing the next second as it cut the strap of Ichigo's bag. "Who am I...? Who I am doesn't concern you, Kurosaki Ichigo," said the figure in a slightly deep yet mellow voice. "Now, prepare yourself... unless you wish to die."

Ichigo quickly squeezed his combat pass, and as he turned into a Shinigami, he quickly grabbed his Zanpakuto, slashing at the intruder before he could make a move.

The intruder blocked the attack with almost no effort, pushing Ichigo back with his blade right after. He suddenly flickered over to the Shinigami-daikou's side, slashing at his side with his sword.

Ichigo's eyes widened at this, and he was barely able to raise his sword in time to block the attack. _T-This guy…! _said Ichigo to himself as he went crashing into a wall. _He's strong, and judging by the way that he moves, his speed is almost unreal!_ Narrowing his eyes, he jumped into the air, followed closely by the unknown assailant. "Who are you?!" he asked again as their blades clashed together. "What do you want with me, huh?! Are you with Aizen?!" It was a random guess that had suddenly popped into his head, but Ichigo figured that it was a good of a guess as any.

"Che!" scoffed the figure. He quickly spun around, slamming his leg into the Shinigami-daikou's back. "Am I with Aizen? Stop kidding around, kid!"

Ichigo struggled not to yell out loud as he went crashing into the ground below. _This guy's unbelievably skilled too…! At this rate, I…_

"So is this the best that you can do without your Bankai?"

Ichigo's eyes widened in shock as he spun around to see the figure standing behind him, an immobile look on his face. _W-When did he…?!_

THUD! Ichigo went flying through a wall as the figure slammed the hilt of his sword into Ichigo's stomach. "AHHH!" he yelled as he crashed through the wall. _Shit…! I'm really gonna die at this rate…_

The intruder suddenly appeared in front of Ichigo and slammed his foot into his stomach, causing the orange-haired Shinigami to cough up blood. "So you're the one that the Kaiser is interested in… I expected you to be much more skilled than this, Kurosaki Ichigo… What a disappointment…" Glancing as his free hand as he opened and closed it multiple times, he blinked as he turned his gaze back to the Shinigami-daikou. "After hearing of your feats such as defeating that monster Zaraki Kenpachi and the prodigy of the Kuchiki Family Kuchiki Byakuya, I expected you to be at least at a captain level without your Bankai... It seems that you really can't do anything without relying on your Zanpakuto."

...

Lifting his foot off of the wounded Shinigami-daikou, the figure suddenly raised his hand and snapped his fingers, his eyes still focused on Ichigo as he slowly stepped back. Ichigo looked on in shock as a black archway opened up behind him along with a set of stairs that seemed to descend down into the darkness below. "Until next time, Kurosaki Ichigo," said the figure as he turned around and walked into the portal.

"W-Wait!" yelled Ichigo furiously. "Where do you think you're going?!"

The figure didn't respond, simply waving at him as he walked down the steps, the figure fading more and more with each step that he took until he disappeared altogether, the portal closing shut behind him.

After the portal closed, Ichigo shakily got up, coughing up blood as he wobbled over to his body. _D-Dammit… Just who was that guy…?_

[Ichigo's Home, Karakura Town, The World of the Living]

Once Ichigo got home, he dropped on his bed, completely exhausted and worn out. _Maybe I should ask Urahara-san about that guy…_ said the exhausted high school student to himself as he stared up at the ceiling. _If there's anyone to ask about unusual things, it's Urahara-san._

Ichigo sighed as he turned over on his bed. _But then again, that guy was right… Without my Bankai, I'm only on a vice-captain level… I couldn't even beat Kariya, and I would have lost to Byakuya if not for **him**… Dammit!_ Ichigo slammed his fist into his pillow as he clenched his teeth in frustration. _Why am I suddenly worrying about these things anyways?!_

…

"Yo, Ichigo."

Ichigo shot out of his bed, startled by the sudden voice behind him. He quickly spun around to face the window, and there sitting on the ledge was blonde-haired figure with deep blue eyes, a huge grin plastered on his face.

"N-Naruto?!"

[Seireitei, Soul Society]

Renji sighed as he walked to the captain's meeting along with two other vice-captains. "Man… I still can't believe that it took this long to appoint three new captains…" sighed Renji as he rubbed the back of his head. "Still, I wonder who the new captains are…"

Iba, who was next to Renji, sighed as well. "Well, one of them is definitely going to be that Namikaze-fukutaichou- I'll bet you anything on that."

"Yea…" Hisagi stretched out his arms and yawned, still tired from getting up so early. "No one expected him to have been able to use Bankai. Geez, it's like everyone can use Bankai nowadays…"

"Oh, definitely," said Renji sarcastically. "Like fourteen or fifteen people out of the 6,000 Shinigamis is _totally_ 'everyone.'"

"Oh shut it," scowled Hisagi. "Fourteen or fifteen people is still a lot!"

"Hey, wait a second…" Iba took off his sunglasses and stared hard at Hisagi. "Hisagi, why are you here…? I thought that you were a 3rd Seat."

Hisagi scratched his head, looking slightly embarrassed as his face turned slightly red. "Oh, well, about that… I'm actually 9th Division's new vice-captain, heh… I mean, it's not like I _volunteered_ to be a vice-captain, but you know..."

Renji and Iba looked stunned by this statement. "What?!" exclaimed Renji. "Well, congratulations! So, is Naruto the new captain then?"

"Oh, no," replied the soon-to-be vice-captain. "He actually transferred over to a different squad. I'm not sure why though… He seemed sort of happy to be out of the squad, but I heard that he might be transferring over to the 2nd Division, so it might not be as great as he thinks."

"I see..." Renji looked up at the sky as he thought about this. "Hmmm… Well anyways, I wonder if Hinamori is gonna be ok with having a new captain… She's still taking Aizen-taichou's betrayal pretty hard…"

"Don't worry about that," growled Iba. "Anyways, we're here!"

Renji and the others stopped as they reached a giant double door that had the symbol for "one" on it. "Rokubantai-fukutaichou Abarai Renji along with nanabantai-fukutaichou Iba Tetsuzaemon and kyubantai's new fukutaichou Hisagi Shuhei!" announced the red-haired vice-captain.

"Enter!" called a gruff voice from inside of the chambers.

As the doors slowly creaked open, Renji and the two gasped in awe as they entered the 1st Division's main hall for the first time.

There inside the Captain's Council was the captains and vice-captains lined up in four rows, two on each side of the room. The captains faced the front, while the vice-captains stood behind their respective captains.

"Whoa… What a view," whispered Hisagi in awe. "So _this_ is where the captain's meet, huh?"

Renji and the other two snapped back into reality as the soutaichou slammed the end of his cane on the floor. "Hurry up and take your places, you fools! We've been waiting long enough for you three to get here!"

"Y-Yes sir!" chorused the three in a slightly squeaky voice as they rushed to their respective places.

As he looked around, Renji frowned as he noticed something. _Hmmm… Naruto and Rangiku-san aren't here… I wonder where that baka is…_

"Now that the captains and vice-captains have all gathered, we can begin the welcome commemoration!" stated Yamamoto.

Renji looked surprised. _A… welcome commemoration…?_

"Proud members of the Gotei 13," continued Yamamoto, "we gather here today to welcome our new captains and vice-captains. Please help me in welcoming the new sanbantai-taichou, Namikaze Minato- Iba gave Renji and Hisagi a thumbs up-, the new gobantai-taichou, Uchiha Pain, and the new kyubantai-taichou, Uchiha Itachi. Also, for the new vice-captains, the new nibantai-fukutaichou, Uzumaki Naruto, the new kyubantai-fukutaichou, Hisagi Shuhei, and the new jūsanbantai-fukutaichou, Uzumaki Kushina."

Hisagi's head shot up at the mention of his new captain's name. _Uchiha… Itachi…? So __**he's**__ my new captain…? He barely looks twenty years older than me…_

Hinamori, however, seemed to cheer up at the announcement. _So Pain-san-, no, I mean __**Pain-taichou **__is going to be my new captain… It's about time he became one... I-, I'm happy for him..._

Kira, on the other hand, sighed as if he was disappointed by his new captain. _Namikaze-fukutaichou, huh? Now that I think about it, I've never really talked to him much before…_

"I only have one more thing to say," stated the soutaichou. "Even though it has been over two months since Aizen's defection, the Gotei 13 remains just as strong as ever, so... do not lose hope…! Do not lose focus, and above all, do not lose your will in times of hardships and trial!"

…

"You are all dismissed!"

[Ichigo's Home, Karakura Town, The World of the Living]

"N-Naruto!" exclaimed Ichigo. "What the hell are _you_ doing here?! How did you know where I live?! Why-?!"

Naruto grabbed Ichigo's pillow and smothered his face with it, silencing him. "You talk way too much, Ichigo," said Naruto with a bored tone in his voice. "Just shut up and come with me."

"O-Oh, uh… yea." Ichigo was surprised by this sudden event happening, but he was also glad of a little company to take his mind off of the previous event that had taken place earlier. "So, where are we going?" he asked as he jumped out of his bed.

"We're meeting on the roof of your school," replied the blonde Shinigami, spinning around to jump off of the ledge of the window. "Anyways, it'll be better for you to come in your Shinigami form, so hurry up."

"W-Wait a second!" said Ichigo, waving his hands frantically in protest. "Kon's not here, so if someone walks in on me-!"

Naruto sighed and stuck his hand in his uniform, pulling out a very small green marble-like pill. "Here," said Naruto as he forced his hand into Ichigo's mouth.

"Ughblerslkrsa!" blabbered Ichigo as Naruto tried to force the pill down his throat.

Ichigo suddenly shot out of his body in his Shinigami form, his human body falling flat on the floor. Ichigo coughed and gagged as he fell on his knees, spitting as he tried to get the taste of Naruto's hand out of his mouth. "OY, NARUTO!" raged the angry orange-haired Shinigami as he looked up at Naruto struggling not to laugh, scowling. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!"

"I gave you a Gikongan," explained Naruto as he yawned. "Don't worry about it."

"Oh." Ichigo blinked as he stared down at his body. "So, which one did you give me?"

…

Ichigo looked up at Naruto, who had an embarrassed and sheepish look on his face. "Naruto… Which. One. Did. You. Give. Me?!"

"Uh, well…" Naruto scratched the back of his head as he looked up at the ceiling, his face turning red. "Well, you see, I uh… Well, Rukia was the only one who had a Gikongan on her, so… you got uh… Chappy."

…

Ichigo blinked as he stared down at his body which was now slowing getting up. "Oh… my… god…"

"Hewo, masta!" said Chappy as "she" smiled at him with a bunny-like expression on his face.

Ichigo stared at Chappy with his jaw hung open, his face completely blank. "H-Hewo…?!" he stuttered.

"Yea…" Naruto stared down at the ground in embarrassment. "Ichigo, I-."

Ichigo suddenly slammed his fist into Naruto's face, throwing him off the ledge of the window. "AHHH!" screamed Naruto comically as he fell off the ledge, landing on the ground below with a loud "thud!"

"You stupid baka!" spat Ichigo as he stared down at Naruto who was on the ground with a funny look on his face. "Just be lucky that you got off this easily! Next time, I'll kick your ass!"

"Pyon!" cried Chappy as she leapt on Ichigo.

"AHHH!" exclaimed Ichigo as he tried to shake Chappy off of him. "GET OFF GET OFF GET OFF! GET OFF OF ME, YOU BAKA!"

"_Don't bwe so mean, pyon_!" sang Chappy as Ichigo flailed her around on his back.

"_PYON_?!" screeched Ichigo. "GET THE HELL OFF ME!"

[Karakura High School, Karakura Town, The World of the Living]

Ten minutes later, Ichigo and Naruto arrived at the roof of Karakura High School where Rukia, Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Rangiku was waiting for him.

"I-Ikkaku-san? Yumichika? Rangiku-san?" Ichigo looked surprised to see them. "W-What are you guys doing here? I thought that it was just Rukia and Naruto!" Glaring at a still embarrassed Naruto, Ichigo cracked his knuckles with an evil frown on his face. "Naruto... You and your stupid Chappy..."

Naruto grinned embarrassedly as he scratched the back of his head. "Hehe... My bad..."

"_Well_, I thought that it would be fun to tag along with Naruto and Rukia!" explained Rangiku. "Also, I just _love_ to shop in the Human World! There's just _so_ much clothes to buy! I love it!" Squealing in delight, the busty orange-haired vice-captain leapt up and down with joy at the thought of all the clothes and accessories that she planned to buy later that day.

…

Ichigo blinked. "Uh huh… Well anyways, what did you guys want to see me about?"

"Oh, that!" Rangiku suddenly turned serious. "Well, I'll make it brief. The soutaichou asked us to bring you back to Seireitei."

As Ichigo opened his mouth to speak, Rangiku held up her hand, silencing him. "Before you ask us why or what it's about, none of us have any clue as to what he wants from you. All we've been instructed to do is to bring you back."

"I see…" The frowning orange-haired teen glanced at Rukia and the others, then his eyes widened as he realized something. "WAIT A SECOND!"

"W-What?" asked Rukia, surprised by the sudden outburst.

"I can't just leave my body with that stupid Chappy inside of me!" Ichigo exclaimed frantically. "My family's gonna freak out and send me to some mental institute!"

"Oh, don't worry about it," said Naruto casually, waving it off. "Who cares what someone thinks of you?"

"NO NO NO NO NO!" raged Ichigo, jumping up and down frantically. He suddenly snapped his fingers, his face brightening up as he got an idea. "Oh, I got it! I'll just ask Urahara-san to watch over my body while I'm gone!"

Rukia nodded, agreeing with his idea. "That's a good idea. Hurry up and go do that, and meet us back here in half an hour."

"Got it!"

Ichigo spun around and flash stepped away, hurrying back to his house as quickly as possible.

[5th Division Barracks, Seireitei Soul Society]

Hinamori looked up from her deep thought as a figure walked into the captain's office. He was fairly tall and had medium-long black hair that hung down a little past his neck. His hair was spiked messily to the side- similar to that of 3rd Division's Namikaze Minato, but much longer and more swayed to the side. He wore the standard Shinigami robe underneath the captain's white haori along with a pair of black gloves. He had midnight-blue eyes and a face that could be considered very attractive, yet menacing and intimidating at the same time.

"P-Pain-taichou," Hinamori stuttered as she got up from her seat, bowing her head in respect.

"Please sit," said Pain as he walked over to his desk, sitting down in his chair. He narrowed his eyes as he noticed the dark circles under Hinamori's eyes. _Judging by the look on her face, as well as her posture and the way she walks and carries herself, I'd say that she hasn't gotten more than two or three hours of sleep each night for the past two months..._

Pain sighed as he folded his hands together, resting his chin of them. "You're probably wondering why I've called you here, Hinamori."

"Oh, uh… well, I uh…" Hinamori looked down and played with her hands, nervous at having been called on such short notice. Did Pain want to talk to her about her having slightly slacked off on her vice-captain duties? What if he wanted to dismiss her and have her replaced as the vice-captain? She wondered about this as she nervously waited for him to answer.

Pain gave her a small comforting smile. "It's alright, Hinamori. You're not the only one who feels out of place you know."

Hinamori looked up, surprised. "That's right, but..."

"It's quite alright." Pain closed his eyes and sighed. "I've been calling you 'vice-captain' for the last twenty years, and I only just became a captain. Believe it or not, it's more awkward for me than you would think."

"I-, I guess so…" mumbled Hinamori, looking down at her hands once more. "It just feels… _weird_ to call you Pain-taichou after calling you Pain-sanseki and Pain-kun after so long…" She suddenly looked up and blinked. "Wait, so what did you want me see me for anyways?"

"I wanted to see how you were holding up. I've noticed that you've been quiet and on your own for the last few months," said Pain. "If you ever want to talk about anything, don't be afraid to talk to me."

Hinamori smiled gratefully at Pain. "Thank you, Pain-taichou…"

[Urahara Shop, Karakura Town, The World of the Living]

Approximetly fifteen minutes later, Ichigo walked out of the Urahara Shop, meeting Rukia and the others in front of the shop. "Well, are we all set to go?" asked Ichigo, looking around at them.

Rukia nodded. "Urahara-san already set up the Senkaimon for us to use." Having said this, Rukia pointed to the white double-paneled doors in front of them and snapped his fingers.

As the doors slowly creaked open, Ichigo glanced behind him and looked at Urahara who was standing behind the group. "Well, thanks for everything, Urahara-san! See you later!"

"Have a good time, Kurosaki-san!" said Urahara cheerfully, waving at the group.

The orange-haired teen nodded and turned around, looking at the rest of the group. "Alright you guys, let's go!"

And with that, Ichigo and the rest of the group stepped into the Senkaimon, disappearing in a bright flash of white light.

[1st Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Thirty minutes later, Ichigo and the others were standing in the office of the Yamamoto Genryusai, watching him as he sorted through some documents.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice, Kurosaki Ichigo," said Yamamoto as he looked up from the stack of papers.

Ichigo sighed as he rubbed the back of his head. "Yea yea, it's cool," he sighed. "So what did you want to see me for?"

Yamamoto signaled for Chojiro, who was standing next to him, to continue on for him. Chojiro nodded and turned to Ichigo. "Kurosaki-san, as you were appointed the official Shinigami-daikou a few months ago, we found it necessary to give you a mission to benefit your status."

"A-, a mission?" Ichigo blinked, a blank look on his face. "W-Wait wait wait wait wait! I have school you know! I've already missed out on a lot of school and summer assignments because of the Bounts and all of that!"

"We can do the necessary mind wipes and alterations in order to cover you during your absence while you are away on your mission," stated Chojiro.

Ichigo sighed in frustration. "Ugh… Alright, fine, FINE!" he relented, waving his hands in exasperation. "Ok, so what's this mission?"

"Well, first of all, you're going to have to know about who you will be going up against," said Chojiro, pulling a thin folded paper from his uniform. He then preceded to hand the paper to Ichigo, and when he opened it up, he saw that it was actually a photograph.

On the photograph was a distant picture of a short and slightly stocky man with frizzy brown hair and small round lens sunglasses. He was dressed in what seemed like an expensive suit, and he was surrounded by what seemed to be bandits and thugs.

"So this is the target?" asked Ichigo as he stared at the picture. "He doesn't really look like he's that strong…"

"That man is Gato," explained Chojiro as he walked over to Ichigo's side. "He's a very influential man in Soul Society that controls one of the few companies that manufactures various buildings, homes, and even mansions for Seireitei and various regions throughout Soul Society."

Ichigo looked surprised by this. "W-Wow, really? So even Soul Society has people that do those kinds of things…"

"Of course," remarked Rukia. "Did you think that all of the buildings and structures throughout Seireitei just appeared out of nowhere?"

"Well, no, but…" Ichigo scratched his head as he looked up at the ceiling in embarrassment. "Wait a second…" He suddenly turned his head to look at Chojiro. "What did you mean, 'for Seireitei and various regions throughout Soul Society?' I thought that Seireitei was the only major… _region_ throughout Soul Society… that is, unless you meant the Rukongai areas."

Chojiro shook his head at this, but this time, it was the soutaichou that answered. "Kurosaki Ichigo… Did you think that Seireitei was the only structure in the vast region of Soul Society that had Shinigamis in it?"

Ichigo's eyes widened in shock. "S-So you mean that there really are more places in Soul Society?! Like more towns and places and-?"

"Oy, pay the soutaichou some respect, you baka!" scowled Rukia, clobbering Ichigo in the head. "Stop asking so much questions and listen!"

"Ow! Knock it off you baka!" growled Ichigo as he rubbed his head. "Alright already…! You didn't need to-!"

Rukia's fist shook as she hit Ichigo on the head again. "I SAID TO SHUT UP ALREADY!" she scolded, repeatedly kicking Ichigo as he fell on the ground.

"OW OW OW! OK, I GOT IT ALREADY!" cried Ichigo, shielding his face with his arms. "STOP KICKING ME ALREADY, YOU BAKA!"

Rukia withdrew her foot and sighed, taking her place besides Ikkaku and Yumichika. Ichigo stood up and brushed the dirt off of his uniform, a comical frown on his face. _Geez… She's really asking for it, that baka!_

"That's enough of that!" said Yamamoto, his voice slightly more stern this time. "Anyways, as I was saying… There are a lot more regions throughout Soul Society than you might think, Kurosaki Ichigo, but the region that you will be heading to isn't any of them. You will be heading over to District #50 in North Rukongai."

"District… #50…?"

The soutaichou nodded. "Now, for you mission… For a long time now, we have been gathering tiny bits and pieces of evidence of Gato using his powers and resources in order to extend his influence to the Rukongai areas. Although we have gathered enough evidence to start prosecuting Gato, because of his vast wealth and influences, Central 46 had forbid us from attempting anything until we have gathered more evidence."

Ichigo blinked. "But didn't Central 46 get wiped out by Aizen…?"

Chojiro nodded at this. "That is the only reason why we are able to proceed with the recon mission. If Central 46 was still around, then all we would be able to do is keep on gathering evidence from the distance."

"I see…" Ichigo turned his gaze to Yamamoto. "So you basically want me to check out the spot where this Gato guy's at and report back after seeing what he's up to, right?"

Yamamoto nodded. "Exactly. You will be leaving in exactly one hour from now, so make any preparations if you have any to make and report to the Black Ridge Gate towards the north of Seireitei."

"Got it." Sighing in exasperation, Ichigo turned around to leave. "I'll get right on it then I suppose..." grumbled the Shinigami-daikou teen.

"Oh, and one more thing, Kurosaki Ichigo."

Ichigo stopped and turned around to face him. "Watsup?"

"Being both extremely wealthy and powerful at the same time, Gato has a small army of thugs, bandits, and maybe even Shinigamis that he commands," warned the soutaichou. "Tread with extreme caution."

...

"Got it."

Naruto, who had been standing quietly in the back, suddenly stepped forward. "Soutaichou…"

Yamamoto looked up from the papers that he had just started looking over again. "What is it, Uzumaki-fukutaichou?"

"Am I correct in assuming that you'll be assigning someone to accompany Ichigo?" asked Naruto, causing Ichigo to look up in surprise. "At least for this mission I mean."

"You are correct," confirmed Yamamoto. "Actually, now that you mentioned it, why don't _you_ go along with him, Uzumaki-fukutaichou?"

The 9th Division vice-captain nodded and turned around to face Ichigo, giving him a big smile and a thumbs up.

"Ah…" Ichigo scratched the back of his head, a dull look on his face. "Geez…"

[Seireitei, Soul Society]

_Fifty-five minutes later…_

Ichigo looked up as he heard quiet gust of wind blowing behind him. "Is that you, Naruto?"

He heard a voice sigh behind him. "Of course it is, baka. Who else would it be?"

Ichigo turned around to see Naruto standing behind him, a bored look on his face. "Well…" sighed Naruto, stretching out his arms and legs. "Let's get going, shall we? It'll take at least a couple of hours to reach District #50, so we should get going as soon as possible if we wanna make it there by nightfall."

Ichigo nodded, grunting slightly as he got up from the ground. "Alright then," he said as he turned to face the gate. "Let's get going then."

… "Naruto!"

"Huh?" Ichigo and Naruto turned around to see Kushina running towards them, waving. "Oh, kaasan!" shouted Naruto. He waved back at her, an excited look on his face.

Skidding to a halt, the attractive redhead gave Naruto a big smile. "So, I heard that you're about to go on a mission, huh?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head, his face turning slightly red. "Yea I am!" he said proudly. "It's a pretty big mission! Anyways, what are you doing here?"

Kushina frowned at this, a sad look appearing on her face. "I came to see my son off of course! Why else?"

"Hehe," grinned Naruto. "Well, we better get going! It's gonna take us quite a while to reach our destination!"

"Ok then," laughed Kushina. She patted her son's head lovingly and turned to Ichigo. "So you must be Kurosaki Ichigo! Naruto's told me quite a few things about you!"

Ichigo blinked, surprised. "Oh really? Well, it's nice to meet you, Naruto's mom!" he said, reaching his hand out and shaking Kushina's hand. _Wow… Naruto has such a beautiful mom, and she's so cheerful too!_ He turned to Naruto after giving Kushina a brief smile. "Well anyways, let's get going, Naruto."

"Yea…" Naruto looked up at the gate and cupped his hands together. "Oy, Danzōmaru! This is nibantai-fukutaichou, Uzumaki Naruto! Open up the gate!"

There was a brief silence as Naruto and Ichigo waited for the gatekeeper to respond. The ground suddenly started trembling as the bottom of the gate slowly started to lift up off of the ground.

_W-Whoa…_ thought Ichigo as he noticed a gigantic pair of hands underneath the gate. _I never stop getting surprised at how they're able to lift such a huge thing so easily…_

As the gatekeeper slowly lifted the gate up, Ichigo saw that it was a giant dark-skinned old man with white eyebrows and a patterned tattoo on his shaved head. "Uzumaki-fukutaichou…" said Danzōmaru, his deep voice rumbling throughout the area. "I have already received the notice of your mission… I will be awaiting your return."

Naruto looked up at the giant, nodding. "Thanks, Danzōmaru." He then turned to Ichigo, motioning towards the gate. "Let's go, Ichigo."

Ichigo nodded and sped out the gate, waving behind him at the gatekeeper. "Thanks a lot, gatekeeper! Cya later!"

"Bye Naruto, Ichigo!" yelled Kushina, waving goodbye at them. "Good luck and be safe!"

Ichigo and Naruto quickly sped across the clearing, the trees swallowing them up as they ran into the thick of the forest.

_To be continued…_

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Well, since this was a slightly experimental chapter, let me know how I did. Did it suck? Did it seem like I rushed it? Did you get confused on any parts? Just leave a review and let me know.**

**Follow, favorite, and review!**

**Also, here's the new list of the new Gotei 13.**

**1****st**** Division**

**Captain: Yamamoto Genryusai**

**Vice-Captain: Sasakibe Chojiro**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown.**

**2****nd**** Division**

**Captain: Soifon**

**Vice-Captain: Uzumaki Naruto**

**3****rd**** Seat: Omaeda Marechiyo**

**3****rd**** Division**

**Captain: Namikaze Minato**

**Vice-Captain: Kira Izuru**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**4****th**** Division**

**Captain: Unohana Retsu**

**Vice-Captain: Kotetsu Isane**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**5****th**** Division**

**Captain: Uchiha Pain**

**Vice-Captain: Momo Hinamori**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**6****th**** Division**

**Captain: Kuchiki Byakuya**

**Vice-Captain: Abarai Renji**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**7****th**** Division**

**Captain: Komamura Sajin**

**Vice-Captain: Iba Tetsuzaemon**

**3****rd**** Seat: Momochi Zabuza**

**8****th**** Division**

**Captain: Kyoraku Shunsui**

**Vice-Captain: Ise Nanao**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**9****th**** Division**

**Captain: Uchiha Itachi**

**Vice-Captain: Hisagi Shuhei**

**3****rd**** Seat: Unknown**

**10****th**** Division**

**Captain: Hitsugaya Toshiro**

**Vice-Captain: Mastumoto Rangiku**

**3****rd**** Seat: Yuki Haku**

**11th Division**

**Captain: Zaraki Kenpachi**

**Vice-Captain: Kusajishi Yachiru**

**3****rd**** Seat: Madarame Ikkaku**

**12****th**** Division**

**Captain: Kurotsuchi Mayuri**

**Vice-Captain: Kurotsuchi Nemu**

**3****rd**** Seat: Akon**

**13****th**** Division**

**Captain: Ukitake Jushiro**

**Vice-Captain: Uzumaki Kushina**

**3****rd**** Seat: Kuchiki Rukia**


	6. The Enemy in the Forest

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or Bleach (obviously).

**Author's Note: **Now bear in mind that this chapter might be a tad bit boring, so I apologize in advance. I decided to just make them a little shorter than usual just so that I can get this arc out of the way (I'm still trying my best to make it exciting though). Also, in case anyone hasn't figured it out by now, I'll be updating this story every 2 – 3 weeks depending on how much time I have during then to work on it.

**Other Information:**

- Italicized paragraphs indicate a flashback.

I appreciate all of the follows, favorites, and reviews, so if you like something about the chapter or just the whole thing in general, please follow and favorite! If there's something you don't like, leave a review! Thanks!

**Chapter 6: The Enemy in the Forest**

… _If fate is a millstone, then we are the grist. There is nothing we can do. So I wish for strength. If I cannot protect them from the wheel, then give me a strong blade, and enough strength... to shatter fate._

_- Unknown_

[9th Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Pain sighed as he looked up at the sky, leaning back against the wall of the 9th Division Barracks with his arms crossed. "So… You've finally become a captain, Itachi. How does it feel?"

Pain, having become a captain along with Itachi, was now wearing a high collared sleeveless white haori over his Shihakushō. Itachi, on the other hand, was wearing a regular full-sleeved white haori over his Shihakushō.

Itachi, who was leaning on the wall next to him, bowed his head, smiling. "How does it feel…? To be honest, I'm not entirely sure… It was Soifon who recommended me in the first place, and that was after Uzumaki Naruto had turned down the position to be a temporary captain. Also, I'm not cut out to be a captain."

Pain's body suddenly seemed to tighten up at this statement. "Uzumaki Naruto, huh…? How disgraceful…"

Itachi seemed surprised by this sudden reaction. "Disgraceful…?"

"The Gotei 13 has grown weak," stated the 5th Division captain quietly. "The first generation of captains were said to be the most brutal and feared group of killers in existence, and they were rightly feared, but now... In terms of sheer brute strength and abilities, none of the members of the Gotei 13 matches up to the high expectations set by the first generation of captains except for Genryusai-dono. Even my own abilities can't match up to their standards."

Itachi narrowed his eyes as he stared hard at his fellow Uchiha. "That's a bit of an overstatement, isn't it? With your Bankai, you're-."

"It doesn't matter," stated Pain softly. "To even allow a weakling like Uzumaki Naruto to become a temporary captain is almost laughable."

"Then I suppose that all of the vice-captains should be at the level that the current group of captains are at I suppose?" guessed Itachi jokingly.

Pain turned to look at Itachi, a small grin on his face. "Exactly."

…

The two Uchiha's watched the sky as the sun slowly sank into the distant horizon, the sky slowly turning bright red-orange. Pain sighed as he closed his eyes, breathing in the cool air of the afternoon. _The bright red clouds make the sky look as if it had been dyed with streaks of blood…_

"So… How's your new vice-captain?" asked Pain, his eyes still closed as he felt the gentle breeze of the wind gently tickling his face.

"Shuhei?" Itachi seemed amused by this. "He's quite skilled and dedicated to being a vice-captain. He _was_ the vice-captain before Naruto came along after all… He told me that he willingly stepped down from the position because according to him, Naruto deserved the position more than he did."

"And…?"

The young 9th Division captain closed his eyes and sighed. "I disagreed with his choice, but that's all in the past now. More importantly, is it safe for you to be so close to your vice-captain, Pain? After all, you-."

"Nothing," said Pain, silencing him. "I have my own reasons for doing things… I'm not growing soft if that's what you're thinking… Anyways…"

Itachi looked at Pain curiously, waiting for him to finish.

…

Pain looked up at the slowly darkening sky and grinned, chuckling quietly to himself. "Actually, never mind… It's nothing worth mentioning after all…"

[District #50, Rukongai, Soul Society]

Naruto and Ichigo looked around their surroundings as they ran past a continuous row of trees. "So are we almost there?" asked the orange-haired teen as he turned to look at Naruto. "We've been running for almost three hours you know."

"We're almost there," replied Naruto in a serious and even tone. "Just keep your eyes and ears peeled open for any of Gato's men. We're basically inside of Gato's territory, so anything can happen."

Ichigo nodded. "Got it," he said, forcing himself to be more alert. "Anyways, are we just basically doing a 'quick-search-and-bail' recon or what?"

"All that we're going to be doing is investigating the areas around District #50 until we find a clue or run into some of Gato's men," replied Naruto quietly. "It shouldn't take more than an hour, but considering the amount of men Gato can afford to hire, it all depends on whether or not we run into his men or not."

…

The two Shinigami teens ran for another ten minutes until they stumbled onto a clearing in the middle of the forest. In the middle of the clearing was a large white mansion-like house, but only much bigger and less fancy.

Ichigo whistled when he saw this. "Wow," he said in slight amazement. "This Gato guy must really be loaded, huh? I mean, look at this place! Is this really only a hideout? I bet he-!"

"OW!" he cried as Naruto slapped him across the back of his head.

"Don't go being all impressed by the enemy you baka!" scolded Naruto, scowling at Ichigo with his fist raised in the air.

Ichigo sulked as he rubbed the back of his head. "Geez… It's not my fault that he lives in a giant mansion which I've never seen anything like in my entire life," he grumbled.

"Whatever," sighed the blonde Shinigami in exasperation. "Anyways, since this is obviously Gato's hideout, let's split up and look for some evidence or some clues or hints that'll lead us to some evidence. The soutaichou will have my head if I don't bring back some evidence."

Ichigo nodded as he suddenly got into his serious mode. "Sounds good."

Naruto motioned for Ichigo to follow him as he hid behind a large thicket of trees. Crouching down, the blonde took a thin branch that was lying near his feet and drew a mini map of the area that they were in as well as Gato's hideout and where they were at.

"So, this- Naruto motioned at the 'o' that was drawn on the map with the branch- is where we currently are," he explained as he waved the branch around the map. "The 'x' that's next to the 'o' is where we'll meet up when we're done scouting the area."

Ichigo nodded in understanding. "Got it."

"Now these- Naruto used the branch to draw a bunch of lines on the map- are the areas that we'll be investigating," he continued. "I'll take the left side of the map, and you take the right. It shouldn't take that long to scout the area unless we run into some enemies as I've explained before, so let's meet back up in an hour."

"Sounds good," yawned Ichigo, standing up and stretching out his back. "I can't wait to finish this mission and go back home. Let's hurry up and get this whole thing over with."

"Oy!" scowled Naruto. "Don't take missions so lightly you baka! The soutaichou himself gave you this mission, so be proud of it!"

"Yea yea," sighed Ichigo, rolling his eyes behind his companion's back. "Yes sir! I'll get right on it sir! Whatever you say sir!"

"Very mature of you," scoffed the blonde teen. "Anyways, let's get going. It's going to get dark soon."

Thirty minutes later, Ichigo yawned as he plopped down on a large fallen trunk, stretching out his arms and legs as he looked around the surrounding area. "Well, nothing here…" He sighed as he looked up at the steadily darkening sky. "It's almost night soon… I better go and start heading back. Naruto said an hour, but I bet he only said that so that he could get some rest while I work myself to death, that-!"

Ichigo's eyes suddenly widened as he threw himself off the trunk, a blade slicing into the spot that he had just been sitting on a second ago.

_What was that?!_ thought Ichigo to himself as he grabbed the hilt of his sword. _Could it be the enemy?!_

"Well well well," said a figure in a slightly deep voice, shimmering into view in front of Ichigo in a crouched position. He slowly stood up and looked at the Shinigami-daikou. "What's a Shinigami like you doing so far from Seireitei?"

As the figure looked up, Ichigo saw that he was a male with long and messy black hair with bangs that hung over his eyes. He had dark blue eyes and a Zanpakuto with a black tsuba and hilt with neon green diamond-pattern designs on it. _T-That's a Zanpakuto!_ Ichigo realized. _So Gato __**does**__ have Shinigami that work for him!_

"Are you… a Shinigami…?" asked Ichigo cautiously, brandishing his blade and holding it out in front of him. _Wait, he's wearing the Shinigami robe, and I already told myself that he's a Shinigami… What a stupid question…_

The figure in front of him seemed to agree with him. "What a strange question," replied the figure, holding his katana out in front of him. "Isn't it obvious that I am? Now, answer my question. What's a Shinigami like you doing so far from Seireitei?"

"Are you working for Gato?" asked Ichigo, ignoring the Shinigami's question.

The newcomer sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "What's it to you…?"

Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he got into a ready stance. "If you're working for Gato, then…" He charged at the newcomer, his sword raised high above his head.

"… You're exactly who I was looking for!" he finished, slashing downwards at the Shinigami.

"Oh?" The Shinigami raised his blade up, blocking the Shinigami-daikou's attack with relative ease. "Forgive my earlier impudence… Orange hair… the strangely shaped oversized Zanpakuto… There's no mistaking it- you're Kurosaki Ichigo, the Shinigami-daikou."

"Oh, so you know of me?" grinned Ichigo. "I'm surprised. I didn't think that I was _this_ famous." He narrowed his eyes as he pushed the figure back with his sword. "Now, answer my question! Do you work for this Gato guy or no?"

"Maybe I do, and maybe I don't," joked the stranger as he brandished his katana. "What's it to you?"

Ichigo ducked as the Shinigami swung at his head, the blade whistling over his head. Flipping over on his feet, Ichigo spun his feet in a circle in an attempt to push him back. As the Shinigami stumbled back, Ichigo dropped on his back, sweeping his feet at his legs and tripping him. Flipping over onto his feet, he quickly spun the sword in his hand and stabbed down with it.

Rolling aside and narrowly avoiding the blade, the Shinigami flipped over onto his feet and slashed at Ichigo, who blocked the attack with his own blade. "You're not bad," grinned Ichigo as their blades clashed.

"ICHIGO!"

Ichigo and the Shinigami spun around to see Naruto speeding towards them, his Zanpakuto in his hand. "Rotate violently, Shiro Kaze Shuriken!" yelled the blonde Shinigami, his katana held out by his side.

Naruto's Zanpakuto glowed and shrunk in size, becoming a sleek metallic silver-white shuriken. He then proceeded to throw the shuriken at the Shinigami, the large ninja star spinning through the air at a surprisingly fast and violent speed.

Ichigo's opponent was taken by surprise and was barely able to raise his blade and block the shuriken, the star spinning at an almost violent rate. The Shinigami's eyes widened in shock as he felt himself being overpowered. _T-This guy…! It feels like his shuriken's being powered by some force… Is it… wind…?! Che! Dammit! _Narrowing his eyes, he braced himself and yelled out as he pushed the shuriken away from him.

"Hmph," he scoffed. "It seems like another troublemaker's come along. I obviously can't deal with you both, so…" He executed a backflip and landed on the branch of the tree behind him, crouching down as he stared hard at the two figures.

"… I'll be seeing you two very soon- especially you, Kurosaki Ichigo."

And with that, he flash stepped away, disappearing in a flash.

…

"Well that was weird…" Naruto looked up at the night sky and sighed. "I won't ask you who that person was. I'll hear about him once we get back to Seireitei. Let's get going and finish this little recon mission so that we can report this to the soutaichou."

"Yea, let's get going," sighed Ichigo. He narrowed his eyes as he stared at the spot that the mysterious Shinigami was at just a moment ago. _What just happened…?_

[1st Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_The next day…_

Naruto and Ichigo bowed low as they stepped into Yamamoto's office. "So you've returned," said Yamamoto in his gruff voice. "How did the mission go?"

The blonde vice-captain stepped forward at this, signaling to Ichigo to follow suit. "After arriving in District #50, Kurosaki Ichigo and I had split up into our own individual groups and had gone off on our own directions to see what information we could scrounge up. After an hour or so of investigating the area, I was able to find multiple small hideouts scattered throughout the area near what seemed to be Gato's main hideout which was located in the center of the forest. The amount of hideouts numbered to a total of fifteen."

Yamamoto remained silent as he took in all of the information, which Naruto took as a signal to continue.

"Judging by the report from Kurosaki Ichigo as well as my own," continued Naruto, "Gato had set up the majority of his hideouts in the eastern region of the forest."

"Just the eastern region?" questioned the soutaichou. "What is the reason for that?"

Naruto signaled for Ichigo to step forward as he himself stepped back. "Well, I didn't really find anything worth reporting, but I'd guess that from the looks of things, this Gato guy set up most of his hideouts towards one side of the forest because that's basically where most of the population is at," reported Ichigo in a tired yet alert voice. "I scouted the entire western region of the forest for almost an hour, but I didn't meet a single person except for that Shinigami guy that I ran into."

Yamamoto seemed interested in the last part of Ichigo's report. "So there _was_ a Shinigami after all?"

Ichigo nodded. "Yea, but he wasn't just some regular Shinigami- he was strong. He wasn't even using his Shikai, and I'd say that he was at least at a vice-captain level."

"Did you happen to see what he looked like?" asked Chojiro from his position besides Yamamoto.

"Uh, yea, I think that I remember," replied Ichigo, scratching his chin as he looked up at the ceiling in deep thought. "Hmmm…"

Naruto slapped himself in the face, shaking his head in disbelief. _You fought with this guy not even a day ago, Ichigo…! Geez, what a baka!_

"Oh yea!" Ichigo snapped his fingers as he remembered. "I remember now! He had uh… pretty long and messy black hair I think, and I'm pretty sure that he had either really dark blue or black eyes. Oh, and his Zanpakuto! I remember his Zanpakuto because it was the most unique one that I've seen so far. It had a black tsuba or whatever it's called, and the hilt was also black. It also had the diamond pattern-thingys on it, but they were like some kind of neon-green color or whatever."

Chojiro's eyes widened at this, his hands clenching into tight fists. "It seems that you were right after all, Eijisai-dono," he said respectfully as he turned to Yamamoto.

"W-What is it, Chojiro-san?" asked Ichigo, a confused look on his face. "You know that guy or something?"

"The Shinigami's name is Izani Kaien," answered Yamamoto in Chojiro's stead, "and he was the former 3rd Seat of the 8th Division over fifty years ago."

[8th Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_Meanwhile…_

"Kyoraku-taichou."

Kyoraku Shunsui slightly lifted his bamboo hat up and found himself looking at his vice-captain, Ise Nanao. "Oh, Nanao-chan," he said. "Just in time… Would you mind bringing me a bottle of saké? Mine's completely empty." He shook his empty saké bottle in front of her face to emphasize his point, a sad look on his face.

Nanao's face turned bright red as she slammed her foot on her captain's face. "It's barely 10am!"

"_Owww_," whined Kyoraku as he grabbed his face. "So cold like always…"

Nanao pushed up her glasses as she turned around in a huff, her arms crossed. _I have such a baka for a captain…_ she thought._Saké __so early in the morning… Really!_

"Anyways, what did you come here for, Nanao-chan?" asked her captain, his voice slightly more serious as he noticed the tenseness in his vice-captain.

"I wanted to ask you about the new captains," replied Nanao, looking down at him. "What do you think of them…?"

"What do I think of them?" Kyoraku sighed as he stared up at the clouds. "That depends, Nanao-chan… Are you asking about all three of them in general, or are you asking specifically about two of them…?"

…

Kyoraku chuckled quietly as he glanced at his worried vice-captain. "Well, Uchiha-taichou is quite young, so many would say that he's not experienced enough to become a captain… He _is_ barely a hundred years old after all…"

Nanao narrowed her eyes as she stared at her captain. "And Pain-taichou…?"

"You seem quite interested in them, Nanao-chan," said Kyoraku, giving her a small smile. "Well, let's see… Although Pain-taichou has been a 3rd Seat for over a hundred and fifty years now, he's always been-."

Nanao's eyes widened in shock. "W-Wait a second! Over _a hundred and fifty years_…?!"

Kyoraku nodded. "Although it might be hard to believe, Pain-taichou is over five hundred years old."

"I see…" Nanao glanced off in the direction of the 5th Division Barracks. "I apologize for my sudden outburst. I just-... I… Every time I even go near him, my skin turns cold, and I find myself barely being able to even breathe as I look at him… He reminds me of Ichimaru-taichou, only…"

Kyoraku sighed as he closed his eyes, enjoying the gently breeze of the cool morning air. After a minute of silence, he opened his mouth to speak. "Well, he _is_ from the Uchiha Family. Everyone in that family has always been quiet, secluded, and seemingly dangerous, but that's only because of their family history. Don't worry so much, Nanao-chan," he reassured. "Pain-taichou might look and seem dangerous or mysterious, but he's actually quite loyal to Yama-jii. He would never do anything that went against his wishes."

Nanao closed her eyes as she breathed in the cool morning air.

… "You're right," she said after a few moments. "I was probably just overthinking things… My apologies."

[1st Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

"He was… the former 3rd Seat of the 8th Division…?" whispered Ichigo.

Yamamoto nodded, his hands folded on the desk. "He was."

…

Ichigo blinked. "So… why did he leave…?"

"I'll take over from here, Chojiro-fukutaichou." Naruto and Ichigo turned around in surprise to see Kyoraku Shunsui entering the office. "It happened around fifty years ago, as you already know. It's actually your typical deserter story. He was in my division, and after the disappearance of my former vice-captain Yadōmaru Lisa, Kaien, the former 5th Seat, he wanted to step up as the new vice-captain. I'll admit that Kaien was a very talented Shinigami with exceptional skills that rivaled those of a vice-captain, but because of his power-hungry nature, I decided that the vice-captain position would be temporarily vacant."

A confused Naruto stepped forward. "If you don't mind me asking, why, Kyoraku-taichou?"

"It was because other than Izani Kaien, there were no other suitable candidates for the position," explained Kyoraku. "Anyways, another fifty years had passed, and…"

_... "Please allow me to step up as the new vice-captain!" begged Kaien as he fell on one knee. "Please, Kyoraku-taichou!"_

_Kyoraku remained silent as he stared hard at his 3__rd__ Seat. "I'm sorry, Izani-sanseki, but your heart still isn't in the right place… Becoming a vice-captain means __**more**__ than just being strong you know… In order to be a vice-captain, you have to learn to put your duty over yourself and your own ambitions."_

_Kaien's eyes widened in shock. "B-But, I-…"_

"_I'm sorry." Kyoraku shook his head and turned around to leave. "Come back once you learn what it truly means to be a leader… I will definitely welcome you with open arms then."_

_Kaien glared at his captain with a look in his eyes so intense that his hands started to tremble violently._

...

"I see… So, this Kaien decided to just desert Seireitei because of a job offer from Gato?" guessed Ichigo.

Kyoraku nodded. "Close- he actually 'disappeared' right after I rejected him as my vice-captain," he sighed. "I suppose that it was all my fault, but then again…"

Ichigo's eyes narrowed as he replayed Kyoraku's explanation in his head. _So this guy just left everything behind just because he was unable to become a vice-captain…? But then again, he __**did**__ try for over fifty years… Hmmm… Something's definitely wrong here…_

Ichigo glanced to the right, catching Naruto's eyes. Naruto nodded slightly as if he understood what Ichigo was thinking. _I'm thinking exactly what you're thinking, Ichigo,_ said the blonde Shinigami in his head. _Something's definitely up here, and I'm pretty sure that Kyoraku-taichou knows it himself… There's a reason why he isn't mentioning it…_

"Anyways, that's about all that I can offer you two for now," yawned Kyoraku. He stretched out his arms and turned around, walking towards the door. "I have to get going now, or else I might miss out on my afternoon nap… See you two later!" He waved as he exited the room, not looking back.

"Thank you very much for your help, Kyoraku-taichou!" said Naruto loudly, bowing in thanks as the door closed behind the 8th Division captain.

Naruto turned to face the soutaichou, his hands clasped in front of him. "If you'll excuse us, soutaichou," he said respectfully, bowing low to him.

Yamamoto nodded. "That's all I need from you two. You are both dismissed!"

[District #50, Rukongai, Soul Society]

_Later that night…_

A short and stocky man who looked like he was in his mid-forties walked down the hallway of the giant makeshift mansion that Naruto and Ichigo had spotted just yesterday. "Ahhh… what a pain," he grumbled silently to himself as he walked past five poorly dressed men who looked like they were thugs. The five thugs bowed low as he passed them, but he simply waved his hand at them, lost in his thoughts.

"Those meddlesome Shinigamis," he grumbled as reached a door at the end of the hallway. He turned the doorknob and opened the door, stepping into the wide and spacious room.

Four men dressed in Shihakushōs were sitting around a long marble table, and they remained silent as Gato entered the room. "I assume that you four know why you were called here on such short notice," said Gato as he sat down on the large black leather chair at the head of the table. "I apologize for the sudden meeting, but we have a little… _problem_ that needs to be taken care of."

A thin and wiry figure with overgrown messy brown hair sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. "And I'm guessing you need us to take care of this problem?"

"Obviously," replied Gato as he drummed his fingers on his the smooth surface of the table. He turned to look at the figure with long and messy black hair that was sitting on the left side of the table. "Kaien, what's this problem that we're up against?"

Kaien nodded and glanced at the other three people around the table before speaking. "Kurosaki Ichigo, the Shinigami-daikou," he said plainly.

Gato and the other three figures looked surprised. A male with a blazing orange-red Mohawk tilted his head slightly as he stared at Kaien. "You mean Kurosaki Ichigo as in the ryoka?"

Kaien nodded in affirmative. "He and his four friends were able to break into Seireitei and fight on par with the Gotei 13. Kurosaki Ichigo himself was able to fight on par with the captains Kuchiki Byakuya and Zaraki Kenpachi. Now, I-."

"This is bullshit!" The figure with the Mohawk slammed his hands on the table as he stood up halfway. "You're the most skilled out of the four of us! You should've been able to beat that piece of shit no problem!"

"Weren't you just listening, Ambon?"

Ambon turned his head to face the figure sitting across the table from him. The figure had light blue eyes and long black hair with streaks of blue in them, and he had a small silver ring on the right side of his bottom lip.

"Blue…" scoffed Ambon.

"Kaien just said that the Shinigami-daikou was able to fight on par with two captains," said Blue calmly. "That means that we should assume that he's at a captain level."

"It doesn't matter!" snarled Ambon. "I still would've beaten the shit out of that kid!"

Kaien closed his eyes and sighed as Ambon argued with Blue. _That's true, but then again, he didn't seem to have the necessary skills to defeat a captain… At the most, I would say that he's at a vice-captain level… Could it be that he's achieved Ban-? No, wait… That's impossible… He hadn't become a Shinigami until just a while ago, and achieving Bankai takes over ten years, not the mention the ten years that it takes to master it…_

"That's enough!" said Kaien in a commanding tone; Ambon and Blue fell silent and turned their attention onto him. "I don't want to hear any more of your complaints, Ambon. If it comes down to the Shinigami-daikou hindering out plans in any way, then I'll deal with him myself. Are you satisfied?"

Ambon narrowed his eyes and scoffed, but he didn't argue.

[1st Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_One week later…_

Yamamoto looked up from the documents that he was submerged in at the sound of someone knocking on the door.

"Come in!" he ordered.

The door creaked open to reveal a messenger, who approached the soutaichou and fell on one knee, his head bowed. "Soutaichou-dono! We have just received an urgent message that requires your immediate attention!"

Yamamoto's usually slitted eyes slightly opened as he stared at the messenger. "What is it now?" he asked in his gruff voice. "If it is the situation with Zaraki-taichou and-."

"N-No, soutaichou-dono, it's n-not that," stuttered the messenger, raising his head to face the soutaichou. "We have just received word of Gato's men having terrorized several districts in Rukongai! There have also been a drastic decrease in the population in the last week, and we're certain that this is being caused by Gato forcing the residents of the various districts into hard labor!"

"Hard labor…?" Yamamoto remained silent as he closed his eyes and thought about what to do. After a minute of silence, he opened his eyes and got up from his seat. "Order an immediate captain's meeting!" he commanded.

"Yes sir!"

[Captain's Council, Seireitei, Soul Society]

An hour later, all thirteen captains had assembled in the 1st Division's main hall. Yamamoto looked around the room as the last figure walked into the room and nodded. _Let's begin,_ he silently said to himself.

"I apologize for the sudden meeting, but well done on gathering together so quickly," said Yamamoto. "We can now proceed with the meeting."

He looked at each of the captains before continuing. "I had just received word of Gato having terrorized over ten districts in Rukongai. He has already completely oppressed five of the ten, and there have also been a noticeable drop in the population rate as well; as such, there are certain matters that need tending."

Kurotsuchi Mayuri stepped forward from his spot, glancing at Yamamoto out of the corner of his eyes. "Hmph! Let me guess- you need _my_ department to issue an order to exterminate a large amount of Hollows in order to balance out the number of souls and Hollows, am I correct?"

"You are," replied Yamamoto gruffly.

The 12th Division captain closed his eyes, sighing in exasperation. "Very well then. It seems that no matter who causes the mess, I'm always the one that has to clean it up! How annoying!"

"Now for the other reason for this meeting," continued Yamamoto, ignoring Mayuri's complaining. "I have decided to send over a captain to investigate the various district attacks and see if something can't be done about it…" Yamamoto's eyes opened halfway as he looked over his choices. "… How about you, Uchiha Itachi-taichou? Consider this your first official mission as a captain!"

Itachi remained silent from his position besides Komamura, his head bowed and eyes closed shut. "Understood," he answered, his still figure unmoving.

"You are to leave within the hour," ordered Yamamoto, slamming the butt of his cane on the floor.

"You are all dismissed!"

[District #45, Rukongai, Soul Society]

_Later that night…_

Itachi looked up at the moon and closed his eyes as he breathed in the cool night air. A pair of ravens flew out from a nearby tree, cawing as they soared into the night sky. He strolled past a continuous row of trees as he walked along the edge of the forest, listening to the quiet chirping of birds while his eyes remained closed.

He suddenly stopped walking and stood still, his body relaxed yet battle-ready. "Come out of there," he said, his hands slowly emerging from his sleeves. "Did you think that you had fooled me?"

"I'm impressed…"

A figure emerged from the thicket of trees and walked forward until he was around ten feet away from where Itachi was standing, his eyes calmly fixed on the Uchiha.

A soft gust of wind passed through the area as the two figures faced each other, Itachi's eyes slowly opening to reveal a pair of glowing red eyes.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**Author's Note:**

In case you guys were wondering, the first scene between Pain and Itachi was just to sort of "introduce" Pain. I will be showing a flashback of his past like four or five chapters form now, but until then, if you have any questions just leave a review.


	7. The Mystery of Itachi

**Disclaimer:** Still the same.

**Note:**

- "E" is a "name" for the once scene between Itachi and the stranger.

Itachi's flashback might seem random, but it'll all come back together later on in the story. It's just to show his past and how it'll end up haunting him later on in the future.

The scene between Ichigo and Haku might have made Ichigo seem out of character, but I figured that as Naruto described Haku as being incredibly pretty, Ichigo might have at least showed some kind of reaction. Also, he would probably never say stuff like, "Inoue's cute," but come on… Inoue is pretty "cute" for an anime character. I'm pretty sure that Ichigo thinks that too. It was just a scene to "lighten the mood" of the story a little, so I hope that you guys enjoy it!

**Chapter 7: The Mystery of Itachi**

_You hold onto the organization and your clan name. These things limit us and limit our capacities… These things deserve to be shunned. It is foolish to fear what we've yet to see and know!_

_Uchiha Itachi_

[District #45, Rukongai, Soul Society]

Itachi remained still as a figure emerged from the thicket of trees, his eyes fixed on the young captain. "That white haori… No wonder why you were able to sense me so easily… You're a captain, aren't you?" He gripped the hilt of his katana that was located at his side, grinning at Itachi.

"My my," he sighed as he unsheathed his Zanpakuto. "I suppose that you're here because of the various district incidents, huh?" He then narrowed his eyes as he stared at Itachi, noticing something different about him. _Those glowing red eyes… Just what in the world are they…?_

"You're right in answer, but your words are false in truth," said Itachi calmly.

Kaien raised an eyebrow. "What? Is this a riddle of some sort…?"

"You didn't get it?" Itachi rested his hand on the end of his Zanpakuto's hilt. "There are always reasons behind one's actions. That's what I meant by that statement."

"Che!" The Shinigami enemy raised his Zanpakuto, pointing the blade at the 9th Division captain. "Enough of your bullshit already!"

Itachi sighed as he pulled his Zanpakuto out halfway from its sheath. "You won't be able to defeat me with your level of skill."

"A cocky captain aren't you?" grinned Kaien. "What's your name?"

Itachi stared coolly at the Shinigami deserter as he leisurely unsheathed his Zanpakuto. "Kyubantai-taichou, Uchiha Itachi."

"Kyubantai-taichou, huh? You may be young, but you're still a captain, so I'm afraid that I can't finish you off at an easy pace! I'm going to have to go all out from the beginning!" Kaien placed his hand on the base of the blade and passed his hand over it. "Get ready, Kyubantai-taichou! Search, Ushiketsui!"

As Kaien passed his hand over his Zanpakuto, the blade glowed and grew in size, the glow fading to reveal a long broadsword with a steel crossguard and a light grey hilt. "This is my Zanpakuto, Ushiketsui."

Oh…?" Itachi blinked, his face immobile. "A broadsword, huh? Judging by the look of it, it has no special abilities, am I correct?"

…

Itachi lazily bent backwards, easily dodging Kaien as he appeared in front of him, slashing at him with his sword. The captain retaliated by swiftly planting his hands on the ground and executing a backflip, catching Kaien on the jaw in the process with the kick. Kaien grimaced as he flew through the air, his grip on his sword tightening. _This guy… It was a simple countermove that he just performed, but the speed that he executed it with was almost unreal…! I can already tell that his speed is at a level that far surpasses mine…_

Spinning around, he balanced himself in midair and landed safely on a branch, crouching down as he looked around, bracing himself for another attack. His eyes widened as he saw the spot where Itachi was just at a second ago empty. _Crap!_ He quickly spun around and raised his arms in order to block Itachi as he swung his leg at him.

Itachi's blank expression gave nothing away as he suddenly flickered from his spot to Kaien's side, his foot slamming into his side.

THUD! "AHHH!" cried Kaien as he crashed through a tree and into a giant rock that stood behind it. _H-His strength is incredible as well…!_ he thought as he shakily stood up. _He's obviously way younger than me, and yet he's at a level way beyond mine…!_

"You have no resolve," stated Itachi calmly as he stared down at the wounded Shinigami. "You fight without purpose, and you'll never be able to fight me like that."

The enemy Shinigami clenched his teeth as he ran towards Itachi, his sword dragging on the ground behind him. "What the hell is with you all of a sudden?!" he yelled as he charged at the 9th Division captain. "If you wanna kill me then do it already you pussy!"

Itachi slowly raised his hand, surprising Kaien. _Is this… Kido…?!_ wondered Kaien as he continued running.

Kaien's eyes widened in surprise as Itachi snapped his fingers, the sound reverberating throughout the area. _W-What?!_ He suddenly flapped his arms out as he felt himself stumble. _What the hell's going on here…?! I suddenly feel dizzy, and everything around me is tilting and spinning out of control…!_

"Confusing, isn't it?" asked a voice behind him.

Kaien quickly spun around to see Itachi standing him, his sword suddenly at his throat. "Y-You bastard…" whispered Kaien. "W-What the hell did you do to me…?"

"The activation of the Sharingan," said Itachi quietly. "Back in the Shinobi World, one of the Sharingan's many abilities was being able to cast an illusion on one's opponent, but in the Spirit World, the Sharingan's abilities are almost completely nullified. One of two abilities that I still possess, however, is the ability to temporarily confuse one's sense of feeling and perception of space. _That_ is what you've been feeling."

"The Sharingan…?"

Itachi shook his head. "It's not something that Shinigamis would know about… Anyways…"

Kaien closed his eyes and took a deep breath, pointing his finger at Itachi's katana. "Hadō #1: Shō!"

Itachi blinked as his sword was thrust forward, maintaining his cool gaze as Kaien ducked and jumped out of Itachi's range. "I'm not done just yet, captain!"

Kaien's eyes widened in shock as Itachi suddenly appeared in front of him. _W-What?!_ Grabbing his throat, Itachi slammed the Shinigami deserter against a tree, grabbing the blade of his broadsword with his bare hand as Kaien attempted to slash him.

"Relax," said Itachi quietly as he stared into Kaien's eyes.

Kaien tried struggling, but he suddenly felt calm and even a bit sleepy. _W-What's going on here…? I suddenly feel calm… peaceful… What is this…? This piece of-…_

"I won't kill you," stated the captain as he looked up at the night sky. "I came here on an order, but I was also ordered not to kill you, as you still have some use…"

"An order…? Was it the soutaichou?" asked Kaien in a relaxed tone.

Itachi seemed amused by this question. "No," he replied. He stared hard into Kaien's eyes, and Kaien's eyes widened in surprise as the three tomoes in the Uchiha's eyes stared to spin rapidly.

Itachi waited until the Shinigami stranger had fallen into what seemed like a sleep-like trance. "Now, listen closely to what I'm about to tell you…"

…

About twenty minutes later, Itachi was walking alongside a makeshift dirt road as he headed back to Seireitei. Looking up at the night sky, he stared at the countless stars in the sky and blinked. _So many of them… I wonder…_

… "What are you thinking about?"

Itachi blinked and looked towards his right at a figure leaning against a tree, his arms crossed. Most of him was hidden by the shadow of the tree, but Itachi could make out the corner of a white haori out of the corner of his eyes.

…

"What are you doing here?" asked Itachi quietly, stopping in his tracks as he stared hard at the figure.

"I was just checking up on something," replied the figure. He uncrossed his arms as he leaned forward, and Itachi could see the two black gloves that he wore. "E came back earlier…"

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "And…?"

The figure shook his head, and for a brief moment, Itachi could make out part of his long black hair. "It was a failure. It appears that he hasn't grown as much as we had hoped…"

"Shouldn't you be back in Seireitei?" asked Itachi. "The soutaichou might notice your absence."

"Don't worry about that. The soutaichou is busy dealing with the rebuilding of Central 46." The figure sighed and turned around, walking towards the direction of the forest. "Anyways, hurry back," he said as he disappeared into the thick of the woods.

…

As he resumed walking, Itachi closed his eyes and sighed as his mind wandered back to one of the memories of his past.

* * *

OST: Man of the World.

www. youtube .c/om/ watch?v=Q2aM5btBLVU (Remove the spaces and the one "/").

* * *

_... "Sasuke…" said Itachi quietly as he took a step towards his little brother. "Before saying goodbye, I will tell you what you wanted to know… There is no need to lie anymore… For once in my life, even after death, I will keep my promise to you, Sasuke."_

_Sasuke's eyes widened as he watched his brother, the Edo Tensei slowly wearing off as he continued to stare at him. "What I did the night before leaving you is exactly as Danzo and Tobi told you…" he continued._

…

"_I will show you the truth," whispered Itachi, and with that, the tomoes in his Sharingan began spinning rapidly as he activated the memories of his past._

_[Past Memory: Konoha]_

"_Itachi… Whether the war happens or not, once they try to make a coup d'état, the Uchiha will be annihilated…" stated Danzo as he looked at Itachi. "… Your unknowing little brother included… But by acting before it happens, he can still be saved."_

…

"_Are you threatening?" asked Itachi quietly, a hint of warning and desperation in his voice._

"_No," replied Danzo. "I want you to choose… You can either stand on the Uchiha's side and be destroyed together, or you can stand on Konoha's side and save your little brother by destroying the Uchiha Clan. This is a difficult decision I know, but this is all for the good of Konoha..."_

… "_Itachi," he continued. "It will be a hard mission for you, but in exchange for that, I can allow your younger brother to live… Do you accept this mission?"_

…

_Itachi bowed his head, a drop of tear falling down his face as he clenched his hands into tight fists._

"_I… I do…"_

_[Itachi's Home]_

_Itachi bowed his head as he approached his parents silently, his katana in his hand._

"_I see… So you joined their side after all, Itachi…"_

_Itachi's eyes widened at the sound of his father's voice. "T-Tōsan… Kaasan… I…"_

"_We know, Itachi," whispered his mother._

_His father stared straight ahead as he spoke, his voice calm despite the critical situation that he was in. "You will take care of Sasuke… Don't worry about it, Itachi…"_

_Itachi cast his eyes down at the floor as his hands started to tremble violently, tears flowing down his face as he struggled not to cry out in agony. "I…"_

"_Don't hesitate," said his father in a gentle tone. "It's the path you chose, and our pain will only last an instant, unlike yours… The way we think is different, but…"_

… "_I'm still proud of you… Son… You really are gentle…"_

_Itachi clenched his teeth in agony as he lifted his katana with his trembling hands, tears pouring down either side of his face as he beheld his mother and father for the last time._

…

"_I'm sorry…"_

* * *

End OST.

* * *

Itachi sighed again as he looked up at the night sky, staring at the stars as he frequently enjoyed doing. _Sasuke… I'm sorry…_

[Captain's Council, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_The next day…_

"Hmmm…" Yamamoto and the other twelve captains were in deep thought after hearing Itachi's report on what had happened the previous night. "So let me get this straight… You managed to clash into one of Gato's top men Kaien, but you, a captain, weren't able to defeat him?"

Itachi closed his eyes and nodded slightly. "That is correct, soutaichou-dono."

"Che!" Yamamoto narrowed his eyes as he stared hard at the young captain. "Itachi-taichou… You may be one of the youngest out of the thirteen of us, but as a captain, this is unacceptable!"

Pain nodded as he stepped forward from his spot, glancing at Itachi. "Genryusai-dono is right, Itachi. Even if he had grown in the past fifty years, there's no way that you shouldn't have been able to defeat him. I know the full extent of your abilities, and you should have had no problem dealing with a Shinigami deserter."

"Now now, Pain-taichou," reassured Shunsui. "I'm sure that Itachi-taichou had a perfectly good reason for his actions."

Yamamoto turned to look at Itachi with a questioning look on his face. "Well, Itachi-taichou?"

"I have no excuses for my incompetent actions," stated Itachi plainly. "Punish me as you see fit, soutaichou-dono."

Soifon sighed as she rubbed the back of her head. _This is like the ryoka incident all over again… It looks like we've found Ichimaru Gin's replacement, heh…_

"I still don't like it!"

Itachi opened his eyes and glanced towards his right. "Kurotsuchi-taichou…"

Mayuri stepped forward from his spot and pointed at Itachi. "I DEMAND that he get punished for his incompetence!" he shouted angrily. "As a captain, there's no way that he shouldn't have been able to take care of a single deserter! This is just like what Ichimaru Gin did, and look where _that_ got us!"

The other captains looked startled by his last statement. "K-Kurotsuchi-taichou, that's going too far!" exclaimed Ukitake.

Shunsui nodded. "Are you implying that Itachi-taichou is a traitor?"

Mayuri scoffed as he glared at Itachi. "Yes, I am!" he stated bluntly.

As Ukitake opened his mouth to speak, Itachi raised his hand, silencing him. "What Kurotsuchi-taichou said is understandable… As I said before, I have no excuse for what I did."

Yamamoto slammed the butt of his cane on the floor and turned his head to face Pain. "Gobantai-taichou, Uchiha Pain-taichou- as you are the head of the Uchiha Family, I will allow you to decide what to do with Itachi-taichou just this once. The next time something like this happens again, I will personally punish that person! Understood?"

Pain, as well as the rest of the captains, bowed their heads in understanding. "I understand," said Pain quietly. "Thank you very much, Genryusai-dono."

"Now, back to the matter of Gato…" continued Yamamoto. "According to the report that Itachi-taichou had brought us, it appears that Gato has already set up multiple bases throughout ten districts in Rukongai… As Central 46 is currently being rebuilt, we cannot simply march into Gato's hideout and take him out, so as of now, I want each of the captains to station at least ten of their respective division members throughout the remaining forty districts due north of Seireitei."

As Yamamoto continued talking, Itachi stared blankly at the floor, an unreadable expression on his face.

Outside of the Captain's Chambers, Hitsugaya sighed exasperatedly as he stepped out of the building and into the light. "Well, that was a big mess," he stated as he turned to look at Soifon.

Soifon glanced at the short white-haired captain before turning back to face the front. "Indeed," she replied blankly. "I don't know what the soutaichou was thinking, allowing such young kids to become captains."

Hitsugaya scowled at her when he heard this. "Oy!"

"Still…" Soifon ignored Hitsugaya's annoyed look and glanced back at Itachi, who was talking to Shunsui, Ukitake, and Pain. "When Itachi was my vice-captain, I had personally requested for him to be stationed in my division because I could tell that he was a prodigy like no other. I just have a time hard believing the fact that he wasn't able to kill off a mere deserter."

"Heh!" Hitsugaya grinned slyly at the 2nd Division captain. "It seems like your precious former vice-captain isn't such a big deal after all, huh?"

"Che!" Soifon sniffed as she looked away, crossing her arms in a huff. _What a baka…!_ "Anyways, Itachi is going to have to prove to us that he can be one of us. Being a captain is more than just about being skilled you know."

[District #50, Rukongai, Soul Society]

_Later that night…_

Kaien stared blankly at the wall across the room as Gato walked into the room, his face red with rage. Ambon and the other two Shinigamis sighed as they took note of this.

_Well, this is gonna be good,_ said Ambon in his head as he stared at Gato out of the corner of his eyes. _Of course that bastard Kaien fucked things up for us… Che! What a pussy!_

Gato walked over to the head of the table and crossed his arms, ignoring the chair behind him. "Well?" he said as he glared at Kaien. "Explain."

Kaien sighed as he rubbed the back of his head. "I don't know what happened… I had expected them to send over a captain at some point, but this guy… He was young, but his skills were almost unreal… It was almost like he was toying with me the whole time… I won't lie- I was lucky to even get out of there alive."

"Che!"

Kaien and the others looked at Ambon as he glared at Kaien. "See? This is the kind of shit that I was talking about! I mean, first you couldn't even handle that piece of crap Shinigami-daikou, and now you get your ass kicked by some kid?! You're slipping up, Kaien! I should've taken charge of this operation a long time ago- then we wouldn't have had any of these problems!"

…

"Well, say something," growled Gato. "I heard that he also destroyed five of the ten bases that I had set up singlehandedly?"

Kaien nodded, not saying a word in fear of Gato flying one of his usual rages.

The short businessman slammed his fist on the smooth surface of the marble table. "You fool! Do you know what your incompetence has cost me?! I sent you over because you were the strongest out of the four, but even _you_ weren't able to do your job right!" He stopped talking and took a deep breath, his face regaining its natural light tan color as he calmed down. "Well… What now, genius?"

Blue, who had been quietly sitting in his chair with his eyes closed, opened them as he stared at the figure on his right. "Kagemaru, what do you think?"

Kagemaru, a long and sleek black-haired male with piercing blue eyes, glanced at Blue and blinked. "What else? In my honest opinion, we never should have set up so many operations all at once. Sure, we made over ten times profit, but it's cost us a lot of money in the process, not to mention the fact that the Gotei 13 had been on our tail for the past thirty years. Now all we can hope for is a direct attack."

Gato looked confused. "A direct attack? What do you mean by that?"

Kagemaru closed his eyes for a brief moment before opening them, staring hard at Gato. "We march our army down to Rukongai and enslave as many of those rodents as possible before Seireitei comes in to try and stop us. After that, we'll leave part of the army behind as bait while we take the rodents and get out of there as quickly as possible."

…

Gato tapped his fingers on the surface of the table as he thought about this. "Very well then," he said after a minute of thinking. "Do as you please, Kagemaru. You're in charge as of now. Kaien will only act as the head during the battle, but as far as I'm concerned, this is your project now."

Kagemaru bowed, flashing Kaien a grin as he stared at him out of the corner of his eyes.

* * *

Outside of the meeting room, Gato sighed as he leaned back against the wall, exhausted by his corrupt and tiring money-making schemes. Bowing his head, he bit the corner of his lip in frustration as he thought about the day's events. _Well, Kagemaru is definitely the better choice for this operation, so we should be fine in terms of stalling the Gotei 13 long enough for me to capture enough workers to make a huge profit off of this plan. Still, it can't hurt to have a backup plan… Heh, I'd better pay __**him**__ a visit. With him, my plan is foolproof. Captain-leveled Shinigami or not, it won't matter once I persuade him to join my side._

[2nd Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

_One week later…_

Naruto scowled as Ichigo walked into the room carrying two cup ramens in his hand. "It's about time, baka! I'm starving over here!"

"Geez, calm down already," retorted Ichigo as he handed Naruto one. Walking over to the table located on the very right of the kitchen, he grabbed the electric kettle from the table and brought it over to where Naruto was at, pouring boiling water in both of their cup ramens.

"Oh shut it," scowled Naruto. "Do you know how long it's been since I've had a cup ramen?! A week!"

Ichigo waved his hands dramatically in the air. "_Oh, a week_!" he said in mock worried tone. He grinned as Naruto pouted. "Still, I _am_ pretty surprised that Shinigamis eat ramen…"

"Huh? Why would you think that?" asked Naruto confusedly.

Ichigo scratched his head. "Well… You know, like… they're Shinigamis," he said meekly. "Isn't that enough of an explanation?"

"What a baka," mumbled Naruto as he took the lid off of the cup ramen. Blowing into it, he dug into it with his chopsticks and started eating. "You know, come to think of it, I've never seen anyone in the Gotei 13 eat ramen…"

"AH HAH!" exclaimed Ichigo, jumping up into the air with his chopsticks pointed at the 2nd Division vice-captain. "I KNEW IT!"

"Anyways, where I come from, I used to eat ramen every chance I got," mumbled Naruto through a mouthful of ramen. "I don't know about Shinigamis, but since they sell ramen here, I'm guessing that _somebody_ eats it."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "Where _you_ come from?"

Naruto nodded. "The Shinobi World. That's my-, no, it _used_ to be my pervious home back when I was alive."

"The Shinobi World…? I've never heard of anything like that before," said Ichigo as he dug into his own cup ramen as well. "Is it really real, or is it in Soul Society?"

Naruto shook his head. "No, it's not in Soul Society. It's real, but it's probably in a different world or dimension than the World of the Living. Well… At least that's what Ukitake-taichou told me when we were talking about it."

Ichigo suddenly looked interested. "A different world? That's pretty neat. So, did you have any friends and family there?"

"Yea, I did…" Naruto looked down at his ramen as he thought about his previous life as a ninja. "Well, I didn't really have a real family, but I had Iruka-sensei, who was like a big brother to me, and I had… I had…"

Ichigo looked at him questioningly. "You had…?"

Naruto blinked as he stared blankly at the wall in front of him, a drop of sweat rolling down the side of his face. "I… I-, I had…" _What's going on…? Why can't I-… There was Iruka-sensei… Ka-, wait… What was his name-…? Kaka…shi-sensei…? And there was…_ Naruto closed his eyes as his hands started to tremble slightly. _Dammit! Why can't I remember their names…?! There was Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, and… Sakura-chan! That's it! And there was Sasuke too! Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, Sakura-chan, Sasuke, Tsunade-baja, and Ero-sennin…_

"It's nothing," he said finally. "But I had a lot of friends and people that I considered family."

"I see…" Ichigo stared down at his almost empty cup ramen and sighed. "Well, that's-."

"Nibantai-fukutaichou Uzumaki Naruto-san and Shinigami-daikou Kurosaki Ichigo-san!"

"Huh?" Naruto and Ichigo both looked towards the entrance of the 2nd Division Barracks. "Who was that…?" wondered Ichigo.

Naruto got up from the floor and threw his empty cup ramen in the trash, heading towards the entrance of the barracks. "It's probably a messenger, although I wonder why they're calling for me and not Soifon-taichou."

...

Once they arrived at the entrance, they saw a messenger on one knee in front of the door, his head bowed. "What is it?" asked Naruto as he looked down at him.

"Yamamoto Genryusai-dono has requested for you, Uzumaki-fukutaichou, and you, Kurosaki Ichigo-san, right away!" replied the messenger. "It is an urgent matter, so please head over to the 1st Division Barracks immediately!"

Naruto nodded and turned to Ichigo. "Let's go, Ichigo."

[1st Division Barracks, Seireitei, Soul Society]

Once they arrived at the soutaichou's office, Naruto and Ichigo saw two other figures already there. The taller figure on the left was a spiky black-haired male with brown eyes that wore bandages like a mask over the bottom half of his face. His shihakushō's sleeves were ripped, and the bottom half of it also seemed to be ripped off, being replaced with slightly baggy blue-grey pants with vertical stripe patterns on it as well as white leg-warmers with blank designs on it.

The figure on the right was a short figure with long black hair tied into a bun at the end with the side bangs framing his/her face. The figure also had a face that was very feminine and was what could be described as "the perfect face" as well as large dark brown eyes, but for some reason he/she held him/herself like a male.

Ichigo blinked as he stared at the figure on the right, leaning over to Naruto. "Say, Naruto," he whispered. "I know that it might be weird to ask this, but the chick on the right… Is she really a-?"

Naruto closed his eyes and crossed his arms, nodding at Ichigo's confusion. _Well, I __**could**__ help him out, but then again, I __**could**__ just not… Anyways, I went through the same thing, so… HAHAHAHA, IT'S TIME FOR UZUMAKI NARUTO TO PULL ANOTHER ONE OF HIS FAMOUS PRANKS! _"She's definitely a chick, Ichigo. Her name's Haku."

Coughing into his fist, Ichigo held his head up high as he slid close to Haku, giving "her" a warm smile. "Hi there, I'm Kurosaki Ichigo, Shinigami-daikou! Nice to meet you!" He stretched out his hand, keeping his smile on his face.

Smiling back at him, Haku shook Ichigo's outstretched hand, giving him a courteous nod. "Jubantai-sanseki, Haku. Nice to meet you."

"_So_…" Ichigo coughed into his fist again, his face turning beet red as he gulped. "It must be hard being a sanseki, huh? I bet a lot of your squad members bug you and all that, huh? If you have any troubles with any guys, then just-."

Haku blinked, confused at Ichigo's sudden random guesses. "W-Wait a second… Ichigo-san, I'm a guy."

…

The corner of Ichigo's lips started to twitch as he slowly turned to face Naruto, his face bright red at the sight of the blonde prankster struggling not to explode as he held in his laugh. "N-Naruto, you bastard…!"

Naruto suddenly exploding into laughter, unable to hold it in anymore. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I CAN'T B-BELIEVE THAT YOU FELL FOR IT! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! D-DO YOU REALIZE JUST HOW S-STUPID YOU LOOKED?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! OH KAMI, HAHAHAHAHAHA! I GOT YOU GOOD, DIDN'T I?! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Haku looked amused by this, and even the calm and stern Zabuza and Chojiro looked just about ready to explode into laughter, while Yamamoto Genryusai was the only one that looked unaffected by the whole entire thing.

Ichigo, on the other hand, still looked angry at Naruto, shocked on the inside at the fact that Haku had turned out to be a guy. _B-But he's so hot…! He's even cuter than Inoue…! That Naruto…! I swear that I'll freaking kill him…!_

Having finished laughing, Naruto walked up to the two figures and gave them a big smile. "Nice to see you two again, Zabuza, Haku. It's been a while since we last talked, hasn't it?"

Zabuza, the tall figure, nodded. "How have you been, kid?"

"Pretty good," laughed Naruto. "Anyways, it's-."

"Pay attention you four!" growled Yamamoto, grabbing the four's attention. "This is an urgent matter! There's no time for any small talk, understood?"

"Understood, soutaichou," replied Zabuza. "Now, what was it that you called us here for?"

Yamamoto nodded. "Yes, about that… Over the past week, is seems that Gato has been rapidly oppressing even more districts throughout Rukongai. Although we have sent a quite a number of squads over to stop their movements, they have all been killed or retrieved severely wounded. As such, I have decided to send you four as well as your own small personal squad to take care of Gato once and for all."

Ichigo sighed as he rubbed the back of his head. "I figured as much… Alright gramps, what do we have to do?"

"We have received a report just a little over fifteen hours ago that Gato has his army set up in District #55 north of Seireitei, so that's where you four will be going. Once you arrive there, use every means to stop Gato once and for all; however, you _must_ bring Gato back here alive for a hearing with Central 46 once it has been rebuilt. That is the top priority of this matter, understood?"

Ichigo and the other three nodded. "So when do we leave?" asked Ichigo.

"Within the hour," replied the soutaichou gruffly. "Go back to your barracks and make any preparations that you might need to make, and meet at the Black Ridge Gate once you've finished!"

_Meanwhile, back at District #50 in Rukongai…_

Gato sniffed as he arrived at the entrance of a cave that was hidden behind some shrubbery, ten of his men standing behind him. "Oy, Mirā! Are you there?" Although his voice was loud and angry, his tone reeked of fear and wary, showing that this was definitely the last place in the world that he wanted to be at right now.

…

"Ga… to…?" The voice, obviously male, was low and husky with a cocky and arrogant tone in it. "What the hell are _you_ doing here…?"

Frowning, Gato bit his bottom lip and gathered up the courage to take a step forward despite his unwillingness to. He then motioned for his men to step ahead of him, but they were rooted to the spot in fear, sweat drops rolling down their faces as they stared ahead at the entrance of the cave where a pair of glowing ash grey eyes had suddenly appeared.

Looking back at his paralyzed men and then at the pair of grey eyes, Gato gulped as he walked forward until he was just ten measly feet away from the hidden figure. "M-Mirā," stuttered Gato. "I-I-'ve come with a p-proposition for y-you."

Narrowing his eyes, the figure exerted an enormous amount of terrifying reiatsu that easily brought both Gato and his ten bodyguards to their knees. "A… proposition…? What do you think that you can offer me that I can't take for myself…?"

Gasping for air, Gato fell on his hands and knees, unable to speak from the pressure of the reiatsu that was pressing down on him. "I-, I-…! P-Please, M-Men-!"

"DON'T SPEAK MY NAME!" roared the figure, the force of the roar causing the leaves on the trees to blow back furiously. Stepping forward from his spot right after, he reveal himself as a fairly skinny yet slightly muscular tan male with medium-length shaggy-like spiked black hair along with jaw-length side bangs. He wore a white fox-like mask with a black nose and small slits for eyes with two black rings around them. He wore no shirt, and he wore black pants with black slightly baggy pants and a pair of black tabi along with grey zōris. His sword, which was peculiarly a Zanpakuto, had a rectangular black tsuba and hilt with ash grey diamond patterns on it.

Releasing his reiatsu, Mirā walked down the stairs until he was on the last step, which he crouched down on. "You have one minute to convince me to join your side, otherwise I'll kill you."

_It was a mistake coming here after all…_ Gato looked up at the sky and silently prayed that he could convince the vicious person to join his side before he spoke. "Well, you see…"

… Once Gato finished his explanation, the masked figure slightly lifted up his mask so that he revealed his mouth. His lips spread into a wide bloodthirsty and excited grin, revealing his pointed canines. _So, the infamous Shinigami-daikou and Uzumaki Naruto, huh…? Well, this'll be interesting. _"Gato…"

The frightened businessman felt himself tremble as he silently awaited Mirā's answer.

"Heh…" Mirā smirked as he lowered his mask, quietly looking up at the night sky.

… "I accept your offer."

[Seireitei, Soul Society]

Zabuza and Haku looked up as two figures approached them. "They're finally here," said Zabuza with a hint of relief in his voice.

Haku nodded in agreement. "Indeed… Keeping us waiting here for thirty minutes…"

"So you've finally come," said a slightly annoyed Zabuza as Naruto and Ichigo arrived at the spot. "It took you guys long enough."

"Oh, my bad," replied Naruto apologetically. "I finished making the preparations for the mission, and I was all like to Ichigo over here, 'Let's take a quick rest,' and then Ichigo was all like, 'Sure, why not?' So we rested, but then we woke up thirty minutes later, and then I was all like, 'Oh no, what-?'"

"Shut it, Uzumaki!" roared the now-pissed off 7th Division 3rd Seat, causing Naruto to shy back in comical fright. "I've heard just about enough out of you!"

Haku closed his eyes and sighed exasperatedly. _Why does he have to piss Zabuza-sama off like that…? I swear, Naruto does this on purpose…_

…

As the gate opened, Naruto, Ichigo, Zabuza, and Haku turned to face the forest that lay ahead of them. Naruto sighed as he took a deep breath, not knowing what would await him at the battlefield.

"Time to go."

_To be continued…_

* * *

**Translations:**

**- Ushiketsui: Lost Will.**

**Other Information:**

**In case any of you guys are wondering, I made it so that the Uchiha Family is one of the Four Noble Families of Seireitei.**

**Author's Note:**

**Did anyone guess who that mysterious figure who Gato was talking to was? I tried to sort of make it obvious who he was, and I'll be "revealing" who he is next chapter.**


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